Asad Shafiq

A right-hand batsman and an occasional leg-break bowler, Asad Shafiq was born on 28 January 1986 in Karachi. He made his One Day International debut against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup on 21 June 2010 at the Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium. He scored 17 runs from 19 balls and was stumped by Mushfiqur Rahim in what was a dead rubber as neither side could progress to the final.

Shafiq was next selected when three Pakistani players were involved in Spot-fixing allegations the three players Mohammad Aamer, Mohammad Asif and test captain Salman Butt Shafiq was selected alongside 7 foot 1 inch emerging fast-bowler Mohammad Irfan. He got his maiden fifty in ODI cricket against England on 12 September 2010.

On the back of his good performances during the tour he was selected to play in the five-match ODI series against South Africa and a two-match test series as well. He was promoted to opener in the first two ODI's and struggled in the role, therefore he was moved down the order to his preferred number 4 position just below Younus Khan, Shafiq excelled in that position and displayed his talent as a batsman. He was however rested for the final ODI in place of veteran Mohammad Yousuf.

Shafiq was not selected for the first test match in the two match test series against South Africa but after a horrible stroke by Umar Akmal he made his debut in the following match scoring 61 in his debut innings but not getting a chance to bat in the second innings as Pakistan already managed to salvage a draw.

Asad Shafiq was selected for the New Zealand series but didn't play the first Twenty20 International, Pakistan performed poorly and therefore Shafiq was given his Twenty20 debut in the following match in place of left-handed Fawad Alam. He played both tests in the series, which Pakistan won 1–0. During the first match of the series Shafiq scored 83 in the first innings and was not required to bat in the second innings as Pakistan won by 10 wickets.

Shafiq was selected for Pakistan's 2011 World Cup squad but did not play in the first four matches, before making his debut against Zimbabawe in the fifth match, in place of an injured Umar Akmal, in which he scored his highest ODI score of 78, guiding Pakistan to a 7 wicket win. In his last match against Australia, Shafiq played a matured inning of a composed 46 runs, anchoring and setting up a good platform for later players to finish a win putting the Pakistan team at the top of their pool. He also scored a watchful 30 runs against India in the semi-final in Mohali.

Asad Shafiq scored his first test century in the opening Test of Pakistan's two-match series against Bangladesh in December 2011. He scored 104 runs in Pakistan's first innings. He played in all three Tests of Pakistan's series against England in the United Arab Emirates in early 2012, scoring 167 runs at an average of 33.40 as Pakistan won the series 3–0.

In 2016, Asad Shafiq steered the tail and led Pakistan's fight-back in a marathon final session on day four in Brisbane. He also passed Garry Sobers' tally of eight centuries from No. 6. The technically proficient Shafiq, who had never batted at six before making his Test debut, has made the most of his position down the order, becoming something of a specialist at guiding the bowlers through difficult periods at the crease.

He always batted brilliantly with the tail, his team-mate Azhar Ali said after play. He always loved to bat up the order, but he performed for us at number six. Especially scoring [nine] centuries at number six is not easy.

Asad Shafiq has also played for Karachi Whites, Karachi Blues, Karachi Dolphins, Karachi Zebras, North West Frontier Province and Sind.