Sudden death of Asim Butt, age 42

Published on Monday 30 November 2009 23:13

SCOTTISH cricket was stunned yesterday to learn of the death of Asim Butt at the age of 42. The Edinburgh-based businessman died in Lahore, the city of his birth.

Amir Butt, his brother and business partner, was told by family members in Pakistan that Asim had died in his sleep. The funeral will take place in Lahore today.

Asim Butt moved to Scotland in the 1990s, having enjoyed a first-class cricket career with Lahore City, Lahore City Blues and Pakistan Railways. His first Scottish cricket club was Corstorphine, from where he moved on first to Stewart's-Melville/Royal High and then to Heriot's.

A seam bowler, he won the first of his 71 caps for Scotland against Yorkshire in May 1998, taking three wickets for 42 runs in the Benson & Hedges Cup. The following year he was a member of the national squad for its inaugural appearance in the ICC Cricket World Cup, and played in all five of Scotland's matches.

He twice took five wickets for Scotland – 6-42 against the MCC in 2000 and 5-47 against Ireland four years later. A powerful batsman, he recorded 35 boundaries, including 15 sixes, at international level.

He won his last Scotland cap against Somerset in May 2005. That same month a random doping test returned a positive finding for ecstasy, and he was banned from all competitions for a year.

He returned to cricket after the ban, but a combination of health problems and business commitments curtailed his involvement. He often complained of headaches, and was hospitalised several years ago when he was found to have a blood clot on his brain.