New Delhi: Nobel laureate and human rights activist Malala Yousafzai made headlines all over the world Tuesday on announcing that she had married her partner Asser Malik in a small ceremony in Birmingham, England.
“Today marks a precious day in my life. Asser and I tied the knot to be partners for life. We celebrated a small nikkah ceremony at home in Birmingham with our families. Please send us your prayers. We are excited to walk together for the journey ahead,” she said on Twitter.
In July, Malik wished Malala on her 24th birthday by uploading a picture of both of them in front of balloons, and a cardboard cut-out of Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan. “@iamsrk had to make a necessary cameo of course,” he joked.
Malik also showed public support for Yousafzai in May this year, when she called on world leaders to protect the human rights of Palestinians. At the time, the Israeli-Palestine conflict had reached new heights amid outbreaks of violence until a ceasefire came into effect on 21 May.
“Proud of you,” he had said to Yousafzai from his Twitter handle.
Malik joined the Pakistan Cricket Board in 2020
Malik currently serves as General Manager High Performance with the Pakistan Cricket Board, a sports governing body for cricket in Pakistan responsible for organising all tours and matches of the national cricket team. According to his LinkedIn profile, Malik joined the board in May 2020.
He graduated in 2012 from Pakistan’s Lahore University of Management Sciences in political science and economics — the same year Yousafzai was shot by the Taliban on her way back home from school in Pakistan. She was 14 years old at the time.
Malik has also been closely involved in domestic cricket in Pakistan and reviving grassroots cricket in the country. From 2018-19, he worked with the Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise Multan Sultans, a Pakistani professional Twenty20 franchise cricket team which represents the city of Multan in southern Punjab, as an operational manager. He also helped design the team’s player development programme.
Gio Colussi, batting performance specialist who once conducted a coaching camp for Multan Sultans, had described Malik as a multi-skilled sports agent, business owner, international DJ, event organiser as well as “the life of the party” on his Twitter handle.
In 2015, Malik founded an amateur cricket league franchise, which for the first time competed in the Last Man Stands (LMS) World Series in 2018. LMS is the world’s largest and widest-reaching amateur cricket league in which teams play T20 cricket in two hours. The franchise Malik founded is called ‘Last Man Stands in Pakistan’.
“Hi, this is Asser from LMS Pakistan. This is the first time Pakistan is taking part in LMS World Series. We’re delighted to have Abdul Razzaq as a peer coach on team and Inshallah, we will win it for Pakistan,” Malik had said in a video message on Facebook. The Sri Lanka LMS team led by Ajantha Mendis eventually won the LMS World Series in 2018 after defeating Australia in the finals.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Malik has provided amateur and recreational players in Last Man Stands in Pakistan “hard ball cricket experience”, given them international exposure and expanded the franchise to Lahore, Islamabad and Lodhran.
When he’s not managing a cricket club, Malik appears to enjoy playing golf with friends and even former cricketers Wayne Madsen and Azhar Mahmood.
Had a great time with everyone at the course. Still nowhere near the skill level of @AzharMahmood11 and @AbdulRehmanCC but getting there. It was an amazing night out. Thanks to @aliktareen and @taimur_malik for this experience 👍🏽 pic.twitter.com/oYpgSQTvw7
— Asser Malik (@MalikAsser) March 12, 2020
Really enjoyed my time at the course today. Surprisingly wasn’t limited to cutting the grass only and was able to play half decent. Thanks to @waynemadders77, @AzharMahmood11 bhai and Richard for the support ? pic.twitter.com/LsSAXafV1n
— Asser Malik (@MalikAsser) March 2, 2020
(Edited by Paramita Ghosh)
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