Mohammad Asif, the Pakistan’s fast bowler, says that his stint with Leicestershire will be ideal preparation for the side’s tour to England this July
Cricinfo staff26-Apr-2006
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Mohammad Asif, the Pakistan fast bowler, has said that his stint with Leicestershire will be ideal preparation for the side’s tour to England this July.Asif is expected to be a serious threat to England during in the four Test series, coming off a successful tour against Sri Lanka in which he took 17 wickets, with a career
best of 6 for 44 at Kandy.Asif, 23, came to prominence after taking 10 wickets for Pakistan A against England last winter. “It was almost the same England team that had won the Ashes and when I started I was under pressure bowling to some big names,” Asif told BBC Radio. “But the ball started swinging both ways and after that I was OK.”Though he didn’t play in the Tests against England, he came for the last one-day match of the tournament and picked up two wickets for 14. He was then picked for the second and third Tests against India at home, and had a memorable game at Karachi, taking seven wickets in Pakistan’s 341-run victory.Asif insisted that England will prove to be difficult to beat this summer, despite the fact that Pakistan have not lost a series in England since 1982. “You only have to look at the last Ashes, and they were playing well even before that in England.”
