Mohammad Asif      

When he made his debut against Australia at Sydney in January 2005, little suggested that Pakistan's long tradition of happening upon blitzing fast bowlers would continue. Bob Woolmer, then the Pakistan coach, kept faith, calling Asif the most improved player in the country in late 2005. By taking ten wickets in a warm-up game against England, he proved Woolmer right. He made an impressive ODI debut one day after his 23rd birthday, dismissing Marcus Trescothick with his third ball and ending with 2 for 14 off seven incisive overs. Tall, lean and possessed of a little more muscle than on his debut, Asif initially generated pace a medium-pacer would aspire to and a tearaway would loosen up with, around mid ...

When he made his debut against Australia at Sydney in January 2005, little suggested that Pakistan's long tradition of happening upon blitzing fast bowlers would continue. Bob Woolmer, then the Pakistan coach, kept faith, calling Asif the most improved player in the country in late 2005. By taking ten wickets in a warm-up game against England, he proved Woolmer right. He made an impressive ODI debut one day after his 23rd birthday, dismissing Marcus Trescothick with his third ball and ending with 2 for 14 off seven incisive overs. Tall, lean and possessed of a little more muscle than on his debut, Asif initially generated pace a medium-pacer would aspire to and a tearaway would loosen up with, around mid to late 80mph. He has mind-numbing control over his bowling, a terrifically sharp bowling brain, stamina as well as the useful ability to seam the ball both ways on most pitches. His action has modified slightly since his debut, but is repetitive and claimed him seven plumb wickets at Karachi, as Pakistan sealed a famous home series win against India in early 2006. After that he blossomed magnificently. He was almost single-handedly responsible for Pakistan's Test series win in Sri Lanka, taking 17 wickets in two Tests. England seemed tailor-made for his particular gifts in the summer of 2006, but an elbow injury before the first Test ruled him out until the final Test, by which time Pakistan had lost the series. Problems began from here, not least the injury which has hampered him on and off since then. A promising career was then apparently cut short when he tested positive for a banned steroid, but the ban was eventually overturned, allowing him to continue. He returned to the international scene after being appointed vice captain for Pakistan's tour to Abu Dhabi after the 2007 World Cup and was back to his annoyingly best right from the start, though his pace has since been down. But just as he was recovering from the troublesome elbow, in June 2008, he was detained at Dubai airport, allegedly for possessing a recreational drug. He was eventually released after 19 days, though a second doping taint on one of the world's most promising young fast bowlers may be too much to clear away. The doping issue continued to haunt him when he tested positive for nandrolone during the IPL, for which a drugs tribunal banned him for a year. The PCB banned him from all forms of the game pending the inquiry. Keeping with the trend established by Pakistani fastbowlers, Asif made a strong comeback to the team in late-2009, picking 15 wickets in the first two Tests in New Zealand and reaffirming his importance in the future of Pakistan's cricket.
Osman Samiuddin December 2009

January 2, 2005
Dead rubber, deader debut
• Makes his Test debut in the dead rubber against Australia in Sydney. Finishes the match with figures of 0 for 72 and 0 for 16 as Pakistan lose be nine wickets. Is dropped until December.
  
November 6-8, 2005
'A' rated
• Bowls Pakistan A to victory against England with 7 for 62 and 3 for 44 in a tour match, but misses out on a Test spot. Is included in the squad for the third Test, but is left out of the XI.
  
November 30, 2005
Signs for Leicestershire for 2006 season
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December 21, 2005
ODI debut is better
• Makes one-day debut in the fifth ODI in Rawalpindi against England. Dismisses Marcus Trescothick in his first over and takes 2 for 14 in seven overs, but Pakistan lose the match.
  
January 21-25, 2006
Second coming, but similar results
• On a Faisalabad pancake, makes a Test comeback against India. Takes 1 for 103, as India score 603 in response to Pakistan's 588.
  
January 29 - February 1, 2006
The turnaround
• In his third Test, in Karachi, after Irfan Pathan is done with his hat-trick and Kamran Akmal with his rescue act, takes 4 for 78 and 3 for 48 to help Pakistan win by 341 runs. Later says he likes bowling to batsmen like Rahul Dravid.
  
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April 3-5, 2006
Sri Lanka is his Kandy
• Takes 6 for 44 and 5 for 26 in the Kandy Test, and helps Pakistan turn around a 109-run deficit and win the match, and the series by a 1-0 margin. Wins the Man-of-the-Series award for taking 17 wickets in two Tests.
  
July-August, 2006
Injury, and then controversy
• Misses the first three Tests on the tour of England due to an elbow injury, but joins the squad for the fourth Test. The Oval Test, of course, went on to become the most infamous one in recent times.
  
October 16, 2006
High and low
• Tests positive, along with Shoaib Akhtar, for banned anabolic steroid Nandrolone during an internal dope test carried out by the PCB. They are recalled to Pakistan, and miss the Champions Trophy in India. Asif pleads innocence, claiming he has not willfully taken any performance-enhancing drugs.
  
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January 11-15, 2007
Back, and how
• Makes a stunning return to international cricket, taking 5 for 83 in the first innings against South Africa at Centurion. Manages 2 for 56 in the second, as South Africa chase down 199 easily.
  
February 13, 2007
Dope drama persists
• Is included in Pakistan's squad for the World Cup, but is still under a cloud over the doping issue. Is due to undergo another internal PCB dope test on February 17, and is likely to face a ban if he still retains traces of Nandrolone. Is also carrying an injury.
  
August 4, 2007
Negative is positive
• Clears a dope test conducted at a fitness and training camp in Karachi.
  
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September 6, 2007
Shoaib strikes
• In South Africa for the ICC World Twenty20, is hit on his left thigh during a spat with Shoaib Akhtar. Says four days later: "Shoaib did strike me with the bat over a little issue, and got enraged for no valid reason."
  
October-November, 2007
Elbowed out
• Due to a right elbow injury, misses four matches of the five-ODI home series against South Africa. Doesn't heal in time for the Indian tour next month.
  
June 3, 2008
Is detained by authorities in Dubai on suspicion of possessing drugs. No charges have yet been brought, though he remains in the detention centre at the Dubai International Airport. According to a senior PCB official who is in Dubai handling the case, the substance has been sent to a lab for testing, but they do not know yet what it is.
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4 for 78 and 3 for 48 v India, Karachi, 2005-06
• Pakistan have recovered from Irfan Pathan's devastating hat-trick in the first over of the Karachi Test. Going by the trends in the series so far, the 245 they manage seems a small total, but India are now facing Asif on a juicy pitch. In the fourth over, Asif picks up the prized scalp of Rahul Dravid, and soon bowls the makeshift opener VVS Laxman as well. Yuvraj Singh makes a solid start, but Asif traps him lbw for 45. His 4 for 78 plays a huge role in restricting India to 238. In the final innings India are chasing an impossible 607, but the likelihood of them battling out a draw is bleak when Asif bowls Virender Sehwag, Dravid and Tendulkar to set up a massive victory. Asif later says he likes bowling to batsmen like Dravid.
  
6 for 44 and 5 for 26 v Sri Lanka, Kandy, 2005-06
• Sri Lanka are formidable opponents at home, and the first Test of the two-match series has been drawn. Asif gives Pakistan a superb start in the second Test in Kandy by dismissing Upul Tharanga, Sanath Jayasuriya and Mahela Jayawardene cheaply. He slices through the tail, and finishes with 6 for 44, his first five-for in Tests. Pakistan, however, bat poorly in reply to Sri Lanka's 279, and concede a lead of 109. Asif is pure dynamite in the second innings, blowing away five of Sri Lanka's top six batsmen and reducing them to 65 for 6, setting up a rare home defeat for Sri Lanka.
  
2 for 34 and 5 for 76 v South Africa, Port Elizabeth, 2006-07
• It is Asif's second Test since his comeback from the drugs scandal. In the match before this, he has taken a five-for in Centurion, but Pakistan go on to lose. In this, the Port Elizabeth Test, Pakistan have gained a significant 141-run lead in the first innings, and Asif consolidates the advantage by dismissing Graeme smith and AB de Villiers early. The South African middle order offer resistance but Asif keeps chipping away, trapping Jacques Kallis lbw for 91 and taking the crucial wickets of Herschelle Gibbs and Mark Boucher in their forties. Asif finishes with 5 for 76 and South Africa are dismissed for 331, setting Pakistan a target of 191 that they achieve with five wickets in hand.
  
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