Swabi-born Mohammad Asad set to follow Yasir Shah’s footsteps

Lahore:A regular performer at the NCA Remote Areas Camp for the last two years, leg-spinner Mohammad Asad has found his way to the Pakistan team that will compete in the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup to be played in Bangladesh from 12 November.

The 19-year-old Asad hails from Swabi in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Asad wants to emulate Pakistan Test leg-spinner Yasir Shah (also born and raised in Swabi) who is regarded as one of the top leg-spinners in the world with an impressive Test record of 203 wickets in only 35 matches.

Asad is aiming to produce a stellar performance in the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup and help Pakistan win the title.

Asad also represented Abbottabad in the U19 Regional Tournament, while his skill was noticed by the selectors at the NCA Remote Areas trials. He is known as the ‘googly boy’ in his neighbourhood, the title was given to him for his ability of bamboozling batsmen with the googly, widely considered the most lethal weapon of a leg-spinner.

Asad honed his skills practicing at the Yasir Shah Academy in Swabi, Yasir is Asad’s favourite bowler and he aspires to emulate the leg-spinner and win laurels for the country at the highest level.

Mohammad Asad on his early days: “I was passionate about cricket from an early age. I used to go to the ground with my cousin and used to bowl six hours daily. While learning leg-spin, I took guidance from Shane Warne’s bowling videos. Initially, my family objected to my interest in cricket but when they saw my hard work and improvement in my game they started backing me.

“My mother had tears of joy in her eyes when she heard about my selection in the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup squad, I really want to do well and win the tournament for Pakistan.”

Asad’s aim is to represent Pakistan in all three formats, for now though, his focus is on the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup where he is set to be a vital cog in Pakistan’s bowling attack that also includes young spinners Mohammad Hassan and Umer Khan.

Pakistan Squad for ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup (in alphabetical order):

1.       Saud Shakeel (captain)

2.       Rohail Nazir (vice-captain) (wicketkeeper)

3.       Akif Javed

4.       Amad Butt

5.       Haider  Ali

6.       Hasan Mohsin

7.       Imran Rafiq

8.      Khushdil Shah

9.       Mohammad Asad

10.     Mohammad Hasnain

11.      Mohammad Mohsin

12.     Omair Bin Yousuf

13.     Saif Badar

14.     Sameen Gul

15.     Umar Khan

Reserves:

Aamir Ali, Adil Amin, Hussain Talat and Muhammad Haris.

Team management:

Ijaz Ahmed (Manager-cum-head coach), Rao Iftikhar Anjum (bowling coach), Abdul Majeed (assistant coach), Hafiz Mohammad Naeem Ul Rasul (physiotherapist), Saboor  Ahmad (trainer), Usman  Hashmi (analyst) and Muhammad Younas Butt (security manager)

Pakistan’s schedule:

14 November – v Afghanistan, Cox’s Bazar

16 November – v Sri Lanka, Cox’s Bazar

18 November – v Oman, Cox’s Bazar

20 November – Semi-final 1 (winner Group A v runner-up Group B), Mirpur

21 November – Semi-final 2 (winner Group B v runner-up Group A), Mirpur

23 November – Final, Mirpur