Mohammad Amir made an impassioned statement admitting his guilt and remorse for being involved in spot fixing. Here is the teenager’s statement in full. First I want to apologise to Pakistan and to everyone that cricket is important to. I do know how much damage this has done to the game, a game which I love more than anything else in the world.
The best day of my life was when I was selected to play for Pakistan. I got my shirt, number 90, the night before, I put it on and I stood in front of the mirror for a very long time. I could not believe that I was playing for Pakistan. If I could have, I would have slept in it but I didn’t want to ruin the shirt. That moment was my dream. As soon as I began to realise that actually I could play well, when I was 13, my only dream was to play cricket for Pakistan. I did decide many months ago that I wanted to admit that I deliberately threw two no balls at the Lord’s Test last summer. But I know this was very late and I want to apologise for not saying it before. I didn’t find the courage to do it at the beginning, and I know very well that made everything much more difficult.
Last year was the most amazing year of my life but also it was the worst year. I got myself into a situation that I didn’t understand. I panicked and did the wrong thing. I don’t want to blame anyone else. I didn’t want money at all, I didn’t bowl the no balls because of money. I got trapped and in the end it was because of my own stupidity. My dream was to be the best cricketer in the world. I’m a competitive sportsman and those two no balls were the only moments in my cricketing life where I have not performed to the very best of my ability. And they were not moments I felt happy to be part of.
What I loved about the game was not the recognition or reward, what I loved was just the playing. I do not know if cricket will ever want me again. I can understand why it would not. As difficult as this past year has been, and in particularly today, I am still relieved to have admitted what I have done. I don’t know what my future holds but I would like to say I have learnt a very hard lesson. I am grateful to those people who have been forgiving when I have let them down. Some of them have been the people I have most admired all my life.
I apologise to everyone for what I did, and that I did not accept responsibility earlier. I want to apologise to my family as well for the distress I have caused then in this past year. I would like to say to the court that I respect any decision the court will make. I accept I have done wrong and that there were other things I could have done and should have done in the circumstances I found myself in.”