A new start

There is a lot that the future holds in store for Amir, many believing he will emerge as one of the world’s greats.


Editorial February 29, 2012

Mohammad Amir, the teenage fast-bowler caught up in the betting scam which last year embroiled Pakistan cricket in one of its worst scandals, has returned to the country. The Pakistan Cricket Board will be talking to him about the details of all that happened. But now that Amir is out of the juvenile detention centre in England where he was held, it is time for the youngster — who ranks amongst the most talented left-arm bowlers in the world — to put the past behind and get on with his disrupted career.

There is a lot that the future holds in store for him, with many believing he will emerge in time as one of the world’s greats. We must hope he has learnt the lessons that came with court appearances, newspaper headlines, weeks in detention and the agony of his family. But now it is time for him to move on and discover his true potential as an immensely-talented cricketer who has a great deal to offer his country.

The story of Mohammad Amir teaches us a lot. It tells us how young cricketers can be lured and persuaded into making money through wrongdoing by others more powerful than themselves. It tells us just how temptation is thrown their way and the signs on the road that can lead to money — along with disgrace and humiliation. The PCB needs to take steps to correct this. Especially in a country where conscience and morality has slipped, a programme needs to be set up to inculcate these values among young cricketers — and this should begin well before they reach the national level. By the same token, we need to find a way to end the corruption that permeates our game at the domestic level, where the dishonesty and tampering that came so close to ruining Amir’s life begins. He must now take full advantage of the chance offered to him and never again allow it to slip away.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 1st, 2012.

COMMENTS (12)

Mohammad | 12 years ago | Reply

@Babu, we should not discriminate on the basis of ethnicity.

shadab | 12 years ago | Reply I support ICC in banning Mohammed Amir who's shameful act defamed the country. I suggest he should not be part of national team even when he complete his 5 year banned because he cannot be trusted again.
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