LAHORE: Spurred on by the first axing of his international career, 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, after being dropped from the Test squad to take on Australia.
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.
In an interview with ESPNcricinfo before the Asia Cup, Amir spoke of the effects of his five-year break and what it has meant for his bowling.
“After five years [out of the game], a fast bowler takes at least two years to get back on top with the mechanics [of bowling]. It is different for a batsman or a spinner. It has taken two years to get my body used to it. I didn’t train or play any cricket for five long years so a significant amount of time was spent on rebuilding myself.