Pakistan Star Ayesha Naseem, Once Praised By Wasim Akram As 'Serious Talent', Retires Due To Religious Reasons: Report

Ayesha Naseem, an 18-year-old Pakistan women's cricketer, has reportedly announced retirement from the game due to religious reasons. Ayesha has so far played played four ODIs and 30 T20Is. She is a top-order batter, who has scored 369 runs in T20Is at an average of 18.45. In ODIs, she has a tally of 33 runs. At the 2023 Women's 2023 T20 World Cup, Ayesha scored a 25-ball 43* for Pakistan against India. According to a report in Cricket Pakistan, Ayesha has already informed the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) about her decision.

She grabbed everyone's attention in June, 2021, when she scored a 33-ball 45* against West Indies. Then in May, the same year, she matched that score against Sri Lanka in a T20I in Karachi, this time getting to the score in just 31 balls.

In January, 2023,  she played a quick-fire knock against Australia. She scored 24 runs off just 20 balls, including three sixes and a four. Former Pakistan captain, Wasim Akram, praised her saying she was a "serious talent".

Now that's some serious talent . https://t.co/P5HS9XkkTS

Meanwhile, the Asia Cup 2023 schedule was officially announced on Wednesday and India are all set to face Pakistan in their Group A match at Kandy in Sri Lanka on September 2. However, that may not be the only time when the two teams come face-to-face in the competition. The top two teams from both groups will move to the Super Fours stage where all teams will play each other once. According to the release shared by Asian Cricket Council (ACC) president Jay Shah, Pakistan will be A1 and India will be A2 irrespective of their positions in the group stages. As a result, if both teams can qualify from Group A, they will face each other in the Super Fours stage on September 10 in Colombo. The