Global Courant
Fast bowler Mohammad Amir has been included in Pakistan’s group of 29 cricketers who will undergo training at the country’s military base ahead of the 2024 ICC Twenty20 World Cup in June.
Amir’s inclusion comes a day after he retired and after the country’s cricket board announced changes to the selection process, leaving him feeling ‘needed’.
The left-arm bowler announced his international retirement in December 2020 at the age of 28, saying he could no longer play under the then management and that he was being “mentally tortured”.
“I still dream of playing for Pakistan! Life brings us to points where we sometimes have to reconsider our decisions,” he wrote on social media platform X on Sunday.
After “positive” discussions with Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials, he said the PCB made him feel “that I was needed and can still play for Pakistan”.
“I declare my availability to qualify for the upcoming T20WC,” the 31-year-old added.
Amir’s precocious, stop-start career was halted in 2010 after he, along with then Pakistan Test captain Salman Butt and fellow pacer Mohammad Asif, were banned for five years over a spot-fixing scandal. All three were also jailed by a British court.
Amir returned to play for Pakistan in 2016. He has represented Pakistan in 36 Tests, 61 ODIs and 50 T20Is.
His international wicket haul stands at 259, including 59 in the shortest format of the game. As a teenager, he was part of Pakistan’s T20 World Cup-winning squad in 2009. Eight years later, he played a key role in Pakistan’s triumphant win at the 2017 Champions Trophy in England.
Amir’s announcement came a day after all-rounder Imad Wasim reversed his own decision to retire four months ago and made himself available to play at this year’s World Cup. Wasim was also named in the selection announced on Monday.
I still dream of playing for Pakistan!
life brings us to points where we sometimes have to reconsider our decisions. There have been few positive discussions between myself and the PCB where they respectfully made me feel like I was needed and can still play for Pakistan after…
— Mohammad Amir (@iamamirofficial) March 24, 2024
Changes in selection panel
Earlier on Sunday, newly elected PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi announced a seven-member selection panel, with the captain and head coach being part of the process.
“We have reorganized the selection committee with seven members, but the other thing is that there will be no chairman,” Naqvi told a news conference, adding that each member would have “equal powers.”
Former captain Mohammad Yousuf, Wahab Riaz, Abdul Razzaq and Asad Shafiq – who all played for Pakistan – will be joined by the current captain, the head coach and a data analyst.
Pakistan are without a head coach after their disastrous 50-overs World Cup in India last year, where they failed to qualify for the semi-finals.
Thereafter, Babar Azam stepped down from the all-format captaincy and was replaced by Shan Masood as Test captain and Shaheen Shah Afridi as T20I captain.
Then head coach Mickey Arthur was replaced by team director Mohammad Hafeez, under whom Pakistan suffered a 3-0 Test whitewash in Australia and a 4-1 series defeat in a T20I series in New Zealand.
Naqvi on Sunday left open whether Shaheen will be retained as captain, saying the selection committee will make a final decision on the T20I captaincy after the training camp.
The chairman also announced the reinstatement of a central contract for fast bowler Haris Rauf, who was suspended last month after refusing to play Tests in Australia.
“Rauf stated that there was a misunderstanding, so we reinstated his central contract,” Naqvi said.
Pakistan will play five T20Is at home against New Zealand, followed by two in Ireland and four in England before taking part in the T20 World Cup, where they will start their campaign against co-hosts United States on June 6. They will then face neighbors India in New York on June 9, before their final group match against Canada on June 11.
The players named for the training camp are: Aamir Jamal, Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Haseebullah, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Irfan Khan, Mehran Mumtaz, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usama Mir, Usman Khan and Zaman Khan.
