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The Curious Case of Asad Shafiq [Stats]

It has been almost 600 days since Asad Shafiq last played international cricket; it was a Test match against England. However, the batter who was once the backbone of the Pakistan side now seems to have faded in the background. While everyone else is unaffected by his absence in the headlines, Asad Shafiq himself can be seen making no notable moves to reclaim his spot in the middle order of Pakistan’s Test team.

Here is Asad Shafiq’s journey in Test cricket from being regarded as Misbah-ul-Haq’s replacement to fading into an average batter of his domestic side.

International Career

Making his debut in 2010, Asad Shafiq has represented Pakistan in white jersey for a decade. In 10 years of his Test career, 36-year-old has appeared in 77 matches, scoring 4,660 runs.

Hence, Asad Shafiq is among the top ten run-getters in the history of Pakistan cricket, while he is the second-highest scorer in Test cricket among the current players following Azhar Ali. Averaging 38.19, Asad Shafiq has 12 centuries and 27 half-centuries in his Test career.

Playing in UAE which served as Pakistan’s second home for years, Asad Shafiq is the third-highest scorer for Pakistan after Younis Khan and Azhar Ali. With a decent average of 45.68, Asad Shafiq has 2,010 runs in his 30 Test matches in UAE.

He also scored 5 centuries and 11 half-centuries, proving his dominance in the home conditions. Moreover, Asad Shafiq also proved dependable in his 9 matches against Australia in both home and away series, where he scored 656 runs at an average of 41.00, slightly behind the skipper Babar Azam.

Here’s a list of highest-scorers in Test cricket among current players of Pakistan:

Player Matches Runs Average 100s 50s
Azhar Ali 93 6,926 43.01 19 34
Asad Shafiq 77 4,660 38.19 12 27
Babar Azam 39 2,729 45.48 6 19
Sarfaraz Ahmed 49 2,657 36.39 3 18
Shan Masood 25 1,378 29.31 4 6

Recent International Performance

Before getting dropped from the squad in 2020, Asad Shafiq was in solid form with the bat. In his last two years of playing Test cricket, Asad Shafiq remained the second-highest scorer for Pakistan after Babar Azam.

In 16 matches, the right-handed batter scored 979 runs including a century and 9 fifties. From 2018 to 2020, Asad Shafiq averaged 37.65 while many other batters failed to maintain their record in those years as Pakistan faced Australia, England, New Zealand, and South Africa in challenging conditions.

Highest scorers for Pakistan in Test cricket from March 2018 to March 2020:

Player Matches Runs Average 100s 50s
Babar Azam 15 1375 65.47 5 9
Asad Shafiq 16 979 37.65 1 9
Azhar Ali 16 790 27.24 2 4
Haris Sohail 12 643 35.72 2 1
Shan Masood 8 624 44.57 2 3

In the last 5 years of him donning the white jersey, Asad Shafiq also remained the overall second-highest scorer for Pakistan piling up 2,702 runs between 2015 to 2020. In this period, the right-handed batter scored 7 hundreds and 17 fifties.

In the final year of his international appearance from March 2019 to March 202o, Asad Shafiq was rather impressive. Playing 5 Test matches, Asad Shafiq mounted 270 runs in 5 innings at an average of 45.00.

Early Domestic Performance:

In Quaid-e-Azam’s Trophy 2019-2020, whilst Asad Shafiq played only five games for Sindh, he managed to tally 267 runs in 7 innings at a decent average of 44.50. Although Asad Shafiq last appeared in a Test match in August 202o, he carried his form in the next Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2020-2021, scoring 748 runs in 10 matches at an average of 53.43.

Despite his impressive performance in the domestic season, Asad Shafiq was dropped from the central contract list in 2021. From there onwards, Asad Shafiq’s career went downhill. While he got no chance to flaunt his skills at the international stage, his bat could not protest the decision at the domestic level.

Eclipse

Following his release from the central contract, Asad Shafiq appeared in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy 2021-22, however, the right-handed batter was nowhere to be seen. The most recent domestic season witnessed Asad Shafiq as an average batter for Sindh. In 17 innings of 10 matches, Asad Shafiq scored 523 runs at an average of 34.86. He was completed overshadowed by the young and energetic batters scoring tons and making headlines while the veteran struggled throughout the season.

Year Matches Runs Average 100s 50s
2019-2020 5 267 44.50 0 3
2020-2021 10 748 53.43 2 5
2021-2022 10 523 34.86 0 4

While the selectors seem to have no interest in re-investing in Asad Shafiq, and rightly so, the 36-year-old needs to break the shackles and make a statement with the bat.

With Pakistan’s side going through a rebuilding phase under the young captain, Babar Azam, the importance of veterans like Asad Shafiq cannot be denied. Hence, a record-breaking season is important for Asad Shafiq to reclaim his spot in the side, otherwise, he might also lose his importance in the domestic team in years to come.



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