Fast bowling has always remained a strong point for Pakistan cricket. From Fazal Mehmood to Shaheen Shah Afridi, Pakistan has produced a number of world class fast bowlers.

The 2017 Champions Trophy final hero Mohammad Amir is once again in news for his expected return to the national squad.

The 29-year-old Amir has hinted at a comeback to play international cricket for Pakistan once the current management comprising Misbah-ul-Haq and Waqar Younis leaves.

He recently met with Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief executive Wasim Khan, leading many critics and fans to believe that the pacer might return for the T20I World Cup this year.

But an important question is whether Amir is still as effective as in the past. Amir had a mediocre run in the recently concluded Pakistan Super League (PSL). For Karachi Kings he took only five wickets in 11 matches.

Before the ban in 2010, Amir averaged 24.00 in ODIs. Since his comeback in 2016, he has averaged 39.17. In 36 ODIs, he conceded 1371 runs and took just 35 wickets without a four-wicket haul.

Former Pakistan head coach Mickey Arthur during his tenure said that Amir’s lack of wickets in ODI cricket was a cause for concern.

Amir has represented Pakistan in 36 Tests, 61 One-day Internationals and 50 Twenty20 Internationals.

He announced his retirement from all forms of the game after being overlooked for the New Zealand tour. He accused the current Pakistan team management of mentally torturing him. “I was not dropped from the side because of my performance,” says Amir. “Waqar Younis is a legend while Misbah-ul-Haq was a great captain but coaching is an entirely different thing. You have to learn and get the necessary education regarding coaching before joining this field. I’m not saying that PCB should remove them from their respective roles but I can’t play for the national side with the current mindset of the coaching staff.”

Waqar has advised the pacer to prove his credentials by performing in domestic cricket if he wishes to make a comeback.

Amir should realise this is the national team, not some franchise cricket team where he can play at his will. No doubt he’s a fine cricketer, but if he doesn’t want to take his retirement back and impress selectors by playing cricket, it will be hard.

Waqar admitted that no Pakistani bowler is in the top 10 rankings of all three formats, but he believes that it doesn’t matter as winning is the top priority.

Waqar believes that the current Pakistan side is far better than the side that toured England last year.

In July 2019, Amir had announced his retirement from Test cricket, saying he would continue playing white-ball cricket for Pakistan. The pacer cited workload as the reason for his decision. Within a month of Amir’s announcement, pacer Wahab Riaz also announced retirement from Test cricket.

After Amir’s retirement from Test cricket, Waqar said that he and Misbah were upset by it. He said both of them felt he was required on the tour to Australia.

Amir’s decision to leave Test cricket at the young age of 27 was widely criticised by many former cricketers.

Amir laments that his decision to retire from Test cricket is linked to his participation in T20 leagues.

In December 2020, Amir suddenly announced his retirement from all formats of international cricket and said that the management should not consider him for any future international matches.

He was unhappy when his name was not included in the 35-member squad for the New Zealand tour. “I am leaving cricket for now because I’m being mentally tortured. I don’t think I can bear such torture. I’ve borne lots of torture from 2010 to 2015,” Amir said.

In the early days of his career, Amir was compared with legend Wasim Akram for his exceptional ability to swing the ball into, or away from, the batsmen. But the ban for five years for spot-fixing in 2010 badly damaged his career.

Amir last played for Pakistan in T20Is in England in August last year. He ended his international cricket with 259 wickets: 119 in Tests, 81 in ODIs and 59 in T20Is.

He was part of the Pakistan squad which won the 2009 World T20. Upon his return to the international side, Amir led Pakistan’s pace attack and helped the side win its maiden International Cricket Council (ICC) Champions Trophy title in 2017.

Amir, who made his debut as a 17-year-old in July 2009, had played 14 Tests, picking up 51 wickets at 29.09 before the ban.

In 2010, he was, along with his new ball partner Mohammad Asif and then Pakistan captain Salman Butt, banned from cricket for five years and handed a jail sentence.

When Amir was banned, he was at his peak and according to a Pakistan cricket statistician in those five years he would have scalped 250 wickets in Tests and ODIs.

Other Pakistani pacers don’t have much experience of international cricket. Therefore, Amir should be a part of the Pakistan squad for some more years.

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