Making a case: Amir deserves to be back, says Waqar

PCB chairman, chief selector also agree with inducting pacer in national side

KARACHI: Everything looks set for Mohammad Amir’s return to international cricket as all major stakeholders of Pakistan cricket agree that the 23-year-old has served out his punishment and should not be penalised any further.

Amir is currently playing in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) and is enjoying a highly productive outing which has seen him take nine wickets in the tournament so far, including those of Test captain Misbahul Haq and T20I skipper Shahid Afridi, whom he bamboozled with unplayable deliveries.

His impressive display has increased pressure on the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to bring him back to the national side, especially after Pakistan bowlers’ failure to make an impact in the ODI and T20I series’ loss to England.

Amir is knocking on the door of recall: Shahryar Khan

In a high-profile meeting between PCB Chairman Shaharyar Khan, chief selector Haroon Rasheed and head coach Waqar Younis, several issues were discussed with Amir’s matter high on the agenda.

“We all think that Amir deserves to enhance his reputation and live a normal life in the community after serving his punishment,” said Waqar at the PCB headquarters in Lahore. “He has proven to the International Cricket Council (ICC) and the PCB that he is on right track and has also performed well in the BPL, so I think he deserves a second chance.”

Waqar also revealed that the team lost the limited-over series because they were trying to find the right combination and had to make several changes to try and fit in a sixth bowling option. That was one of the reasons why Iftikhar Ahmed was included in the second and third ODI, while Babar Azam was asked to open instead of Ahmed Shehzad for the same reason.

After Misbah, Amir rattles Afridi's stumps in BPL

Haroon backed Waqar’s statement saying that Amir has done everything right, from serving his punishment to helping the ICC in curtailing match-fixing in the sport, and therefore deserves a second chance.

“I believe that if a player has fulfilled his punishment then there is no reason for us to stop him from playing international cricket. Plus, he is bowling brilliantly and can be extremely beneficial to the national side,” said Haroon.

Responding to Shaharyar’s criticism that some unfit players were included in the squad, Haroon also clarified that all the players were picked on the basis of their bowling, batting and fielding abilities.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 4^th,  2015.

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