Azhar Mahmood: “I believe he will come back to international cricket as a better bowler”

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Pakistan bowling coach Azhar Mahmood has backed left-arm seamer Mohammad Amir to regain his spot in the national team following a dismal run of form as of late.

Amir was dropped for the ongoing Test series against Australia after going wicketless in the Asia Cup.

When asked about why Amir has failed to have an impact with the ball, Mahmood conceded that it could be down to “fatigue” and “pressure”.

“Mohammad Amir has been struggling a bit since his return and fatigue could be a reason for that,” Mahmood wrote in his blog for PakPassion. “Regardless of other factors, the fact is that there has been a lot of pressure on Amir in recent times.

“Because he has that wicket-taking ability, almost everyone seems to think that Amir is the key bowler in our team. But, he is not taking wickets and that pressure to perform is creating issues for him. This is then causing some self-doubts on his own ability which is why him not playing in the next series against Australia will give him that much-needed break from this high pressure.”

Mahmood has advised Amir to make his presence felt on the domestic circuit in order to recoup some of the confidence he has lost.

“He can now go back to domestic cricket in a relaxed frame of mind and work on some technical issues such as his wrist position,” he wrote. “In addition, as you may have seen, he has started to stop before he delivers the ball which is a problem.

“But, now he has a good opportunity to fix the issues we have highlighted when he goes back to domestic cricket. We have told him exactly what he needs to do to remedy his problems and he will work on fixing the issues when he plays in domestic cricket and I believe he will come back to international cricket as a better bowler.”