In a few hours post the match between England and Pakistan, the daughter of Pakistan batsman Asif Ali passed away. The little girl was fighting with cancer and going through treatment in the United States. Asif Ali, following the same is expected to leave the tour of England soon.
Asif To Leave England Tour Post Daughter’s Demise
The cancer was detected earlier during the Pakistan Super League. He, reportedly broke into tears while talking about the same with the Islamabad United coach Dean Jones, the former Australia batsman.A statement has been issued on Sunday by Islamabad United, the team Asif plays for in Pakistan Super League.
It said, “ISLU family pays its deepest condolences to @AasifAli2018 on the tragic loss of his daughter. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Asif & his family. Asif is a great example of strength & courage. He is an inspiration to us.”
Before his departure for the series in England, Asif tweeted about the treatment scenario of his daughter. He asked his fans to pray for the kid as well. Asif had a match against England on Sunday where he made 22 during Pakistan’s 54-run defeat. This was the fifth and last match of the series. England won the series 4-0 after the first match was washed out in rain. Asif played in all of the matches of the series and scored two fifties as well with a career-best 52.
World Cup Ahead
Asif Ali wasn’t included in the preliminary World Cup squad of Pakistan. But now he has been selected for the final 15-member squad of Pakistan Cricket team for WC 2019. He has scored 342 runs in 16 ODIs till date at an average of 31.09 and a strike rate of 131.48. His hard work on field paid off well. Pakistan team will be leaving for the World Cup soon.
But with this blow, Asif might need some time to join the team. He will probably miss the warm-up matches. During the announcement of team the chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq mentioned that they would update in future about the hard hitter’s availability.
Written By Shreyasi Dravid
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