Mohammad Amir
Flickr photo by ramograph shared under a Creative Commons (BY-NC-ND 2.0) license.

Mohammad Amir: Can he keep riding his past reputation?

Mohammed Saqib·
One Day International (ODI)
·2 Comments·

The pressure continues to mount on Mohammad Amir as he finds himself on the verge of being dropped…

Napoleon Bonaparte, when captured and thrown into gaol, kicked upon his prison door and announced to his stunned captors that he was Napoleon. Because of his reputation, he didn’t need to say anything other than his name. Unsurprisingly, it was enough to get him out of that prison. Now, I don’t vouch for the historical accuracy of this story, but it gives an insight on how we as humans form our convictions and can often fall prey to reputation or the immense self-confidence of individuals.

Ever since the ban on Mohammad Amir from cricket was lifted, the fans wanted the left-armer back in the team to take his rightful place as leader of the attack. This yearning was partly a consequence of the spin-heavy side Pakistan fielded between 2010-15 and a pace attack which was headlined by Wahab Riaz. The fact that Amir had played no cricket for five consecutive years didn’t seem to matter. Everyone was overcome by the nostalgia of a teenage Amir running in with his flowing hair, delivering absolute crackers, and leaving batsmen clueless. Even his worst critics never doubted his maddening ability with the ball. The fans were ready to forgive all his sins – and desperately waited for the crowning of the next big thing in Pakistan cricket.

So, Amir made a comeback. For over two years now, he has been a regular fixture for the team in all three formats of the game. The new Amir has seemed only a shadow of that teenage wonder-boy. The new Amir needs perfect conditions to be able to swing the ball effectively. He has struggled to bowl for longer spells and often looks visibly uncomfortable. His line isn’t as immaculate as it used to be, and he often gets clipped of the pads for four. If it wasn’t for the Champions Trophy final, there would be serious questions raised about whether this is really Amir or an identity thief doing his best impression of the seamer.

His initial struggles seemed only natural as returning from a five year ban could never be easy. The team management persisted with him even when he looked completely flat and copped punishment from the batsmen. But after the Champions Trophy final, where he took the three top-order wickets of Rohit, Dhawan and Kohli, it was established that sticking with Amir despite his struggles has paid off. He was deemed ready to take over the world. However, it was not to be, as the quickie has played only nine ODIs since that game. His record in those nine games reads as 3/255 in 62 overs – with a strike rate of 124 balls per wicket. Among all ten bowlers to play for Pakistan in that period, Amir boasts the worst average and strike-rate, and has effectively been the team’s least economical bowler.

For any other bowler, these numbers would mean an imminent ousting from the national team. For Mohammad Amir, that time has yet to come. However, the team management is now increasingly worried about his lack of penetration. Mickey Arthur, in the press conference after Pakistan’s encounter with India in the Asia Cup, expressed his concerns regarding Amir’s lack of form: “I’d be lying if I sat here and said there wasn’t any concern about Amir. There is pressure on him, of course there is.”. But dropping Amir won’t be an easy decision for the team management as it would invite criticism from the fans, especially if Amir’s replacement fails to turn in a solid performance.

Junaid Khan, and the teenage Shaheen Afridi, are the two immediate replacements available at their disposal. However, Junaid has long lost the incisive swing and pace he once had and throwing young Shaheen into the mix in the middle of the tournament might be a bit unfair on the youngster. Whatever the decision of the team management may be, Mohammad Amir needs to have a good hard look at himself and think about why he finds himself on the verge of being dropped from the national side despite his outrageous talent.