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One Tiny Step at a Time, Amir Seeks to Win Cricket Over Again

Pakistan’s Mohammad Amir injected life into an otherwise insipid match. He ignited hope among his men.

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The fast bowler is a heroic figure in cricket. As he turns at the top of the mark, gathering pace towards his target, with a five and a half ounce missile in hand, he enraptures the arena.

They watch entranced in the stands. He sears in the delivery. Ten men rise in vociferous appeal alongside as it crashes into the toe of the hapless batsman.

Not out. The man in the coat ordains.

Also read: Pandya Picks 3 and Virat Scores 49 as India Win Against Pakistan

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Perplexed, Bemused, and Unbelieving

He returns to resume the assault. Gentle strides before a burst of momentum as he hurtles menacingly forward again. The missile in hand hoops in the air, snarling inwards like a cobra, clattering into the pads before the willow can even attempt an intervention.

Pakistan’s Mohammad Amir injected life into an otherwise insipid match. He ignited hope among his men.
Pakistan’s Mohammad Amir (left) celebrates Rohit Sharma’s wicket during the Asia Cup Twenty20 international cricket match in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Saturday, 27 February 2016. (Photo: AP)

Rohit Sharma is out this time. Mohammad Amir has his man. The fast bowler makes the first incision. Ten men dash deliriously towards him and wrap him in embrace. He is the heroic figure they have turned to after an embarrassing failure in the first half of the contest.

This is why he plays.

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Amir Injected Life in an Insipid Match

Amir’s four over, three-wicket spell against India in Dhaka the other night was more than just an enthralling passage of play. Defending a meager total, against their fiercest rivals, Amir injected life into what may have otherwise ended as an insipid match. Amir ignited hope among his men, and in those few minutes, perhaps convinced them to believe in him again.

He was in their corner. He would bowl for them. He wouldn’t let them down. Not again. Not ever again.

Mohammad Amir isn’t 24 yet. Yet, he has lived a full life. He once stepped over a white line. Intentionally. So he could make some extra money. They sent him to jail for it and packed him away from the game he loved for five years. He knew he deserved it. He said sorry. He went away.

But then, when the punishment was complete, it was time to embrace the craft that defined him again. He was born to bowl, this boy. Sinuous. Skilled. Sly. He had it all. Yet, his presence was a reminder of a wound at the heart of cricket.

So when he landed at a training camp, the men asked to accept him back weren’t sure. A couple of them left in a huff, among them the captain of the national one-day side. A former captain described his recall as “hasty” arguing it was impossible to fathom the “pangs of betrayal” players felt in the presence of a figure such as him.

Also read: Mohammad Amir is a World Class Bowler: Virat Kohli

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He Knew the Onus Was on Him

Amir endured. He heard. He accepted. He knew the onus was on him.

Essentially, Amir understood he was an unprecedented leap of faith. Cricket had ejected fixers before and pretty much slammed its door shut on them. Some had made faltering comebacks at lower levels but not on the international stage. A second chance had been given to breathe the rarefied air at the game’s elite level. He had to be grateful. Humbled. And deserving.

Also read: What Amir Did Was His Own Fault, No One Else Should Cry: Waqar

So far, he has gleefully seized on the opportunity. Two one-day internationals in New Zealand yielded five wickets at an average of under-14 and an economy rate of below 4. The T20s in New Zealand weren’t as successful but he has sparkled so far in the Asia Cup.

39 of his 48 balls in two matches have been dots. He has been hit for just three fours. After the three-wicket sizzle against India, he tormented the UAE, conceding just six runs and taking two wickets in his four overs, the second most economical completed spell in T20 internationals.

He is definitely world class and he is getting stronger and stronger. He bowled superbly in New Zealand and he’s getting better. He’s going to be asset for Pakistan in the next few years.
Waqar Younis, Pakistan Coach

Ironically, Waqar was coach in 2010 when Amir delivered the infamous no-ball at Lord’s on instruction. Six years later, reunited as coach and ward they have forged a bond again, repairing what was certainly a ruptured relationship.

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Splendour of Amir’s Craft

Cricket, lacerated repeatedly by the treacherous within its ranks, is extending a merciful gaze over one such offender. He is striving to be worthy of the generosity. The splendour of Amir’s craft is shining through and visibly enriching the game he once deceived.

Pakistan’s Mohammad Amir injected life into an otherwise insipid match. He ignited hope among his men.
Pakistan’s Mohammad Amir (left) bowled out by India’s Hardik Pandya, unseen, during the India-Pakistan Asia Cup Twenty20 match in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Saturday, 27 February 2016. (Photo: AP)

This English summer, when Pakistan tour for the first time since that wretched series of 2010, the first Test is at Lord’s. Mohammad Amir took 6/84 when he last played at that hallowed venue and was player of the series. Yet, it was the darkest hour of his young life.

If he runs in on a sun soaked morning at the ground, red cherry in hand, it will be the ultimate fairytale. There is a road back after all, even from self-inflicted hell.

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