Former fast bowler Mohammad Asif has made a shocking revelation about the alleged age-fraud being practiced in the Pakistan squad.
Asif, whose cricketing career came to a premature end as he was found guilty in a spot-fixing scandal, said the young guns of Pakistan are nine to ten years older than what their official age-certificates suggest.
The former pacer feels the issues regarding their age is the reason behind their inability to bowl longer spells.
Asif's remarks came after Pakistan's 101-run defeat against New Zealand in the first Test which also saw the Kiwi batsmen enjoy a run-fest against the young pace battery.
"These kids do not have the knowledge. They don't know how to keep the batsman on the front foot, not give them a single and how to bowl on the wickets. When they try to bowl on the wickets, it goes down the leg-side. They do not have the control," Asif told former teammate Kamran Akmal on the latter's Youtube channel.
"And they are so aged. It is written as 17-18 years on paper, but they are actually 27-28 years old because they don't have the flexibility to bowl 20-25 overs. They don't know how to bend the body; they become stiff. They are not able to stand on the field after bowling a 5-6 over spell," he explained.
"I feel it might have been 5-6 years since a fast bowler took 10 wickets in a match. We used to salivate after seeing the pitches like the ones in New Zealand. There was no question of leaving the ball as a fast bowler. I never used to leave the ball before taking a five-wicket haul," Asif added.
Earlier, Pakistan skipper Babar Azam was ruled out from the second Test against New Zealand. In Babar's absence, Mohammad Rizwan, who captained Pakistan in the first Test, will continue to lead the side.
"We have seen improvement in Babar Azam's injury but he is yet to fully recover. He is our captain and the most important batsman in the line-up, so we do not want to take any risk," the team doctor said in a release issued by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
"The medical team is constantly reviewing his injury and we are hopeful he will be available for the home series against South Africa," he added.
Pakistan will take on New Zealand in the second Test of the two-match series at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch from January 3.
( With inputs from ANI )
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