Nasser Hussain feels that Mohammad Amir will have to shine in the ODI series against England in order to have a chance of making it into Pakistan’s finalised World Cup squad
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Former England captain Nasser Hussain has admitted that left-arm seamer Mohammad Amir will have to excel during the ODI series against England if he is have a chance of being in Pakistan’s finalised World Cup squad.
Amir was left out of Pakistan’s World Cup team when it was announced earlier this month.
Amir’s form in ODIs has been dismal since the conclusion of the Champions Trophy in June 2017 as he has taken five wickets in 14 matches at an average of 92.60.
However, Pakistan are permitted to make changes to it without permission from the International Cricket Council (ICC) until May 23.
With that in mind, Hussain feels that Amir can claim a spot in the finalised squad, but he will have to put up a string of strong performances against England during the five-match ODI series, which will run from May 8 to 19.
“Obviously there has been a lot of disappointment from Pakistan fans regarding Mohammad Amir and I am sure that for such a high-quality bowler Amir himself is disappointed in these statistics and his output,” he told PakPassion. “It seems that the white ball isn’t swinging as much for him these days.
“When I recall Mohammad Amir at his best, he was bowling those big booming in-swingers and then the one going across the batsman became a threat. When the ball hasn’t swung for him, what is his plan B?
“There’s been a drop-off in pace from Mohammad Amir, and perhaps it’s a confidence thing. But having said all of this, I see him as a big-match player and one only has to think back to how he bowled in the Champions Trophy final and the players he got out. There is no doubt that he gets great players out when he is on-song.
“It doesn’t matter who you are, with his recent statistics, nobody has a God-given right to be on the team sheet day-in, day-out and you have to perform. Like I said, Pakistan will always have top-quality pace-bowlers so competition for places will be intense. I think they have done the right thing with Mohammad Amir, go to England, play in the five-match series against England, the door is not closed on you and we will pick from that 17-man squad and let’s see if you can get back to your best.
“We want you to do well, but you have to make sure you put in the performances in those five ODIs against England to play in the World Cup.”
Pakistan will begin their World Cup campaign against the West Indies in Nottingham on May 31.
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