Daily Times

LAHORE: After being dropped from the national squad for Australia series, fast bowler Mohammad Amir is set to play his first domestic first-class game in Pakistan in three years. Amir will play for Sui Southern Gas Corporation (SSGC) in the ongoing domestic season. Since his reintegration into the Pakistan side, Amir has played 73 international matches across formats, picking up 56 Test wickets at an average of 33.21, 33 ODI wickets at 36.66, and 29 T20I wickets while conceding 6.68 runs per over. He has been, more or less, an automatic pick in all formats, but his recent form in ODIs — he has gone wicketless in his last five games, and has only taken three wickets since the final of last year’s Champions Trophy, at an average of 100.66 – has now cost him his place. Amir played four first-class games for SSGC in 2015 soon after he returned from a five-year ban for spot-fixing, and picked up a five-for in a Quaid-e-Azam Trophy match. But he hasn’t played any domestic first-class cricket since then, having been a regular for Pakistan in all three formats as well as featuring in county cricket and T20 leagues.

He spoke earlier this year of reducing his Test workload to extend his international career, even though he was impressive in the three Tests Pakistan played this year — one against Ireland and two against England — taking 12 wickets at an average of 18.41. His bowling average in the UAE, however, is less flattering, albeit over a small sample size: in four Tests in Pakistan’s adopted home, he has taken seven wickets at 56.42.

Published in Daily Times, October 1, 2018.