Mickey Arthur on Mohammad Amir: “He had five years out of the game, we mustn’t forget that. In those five years, he didn’t do anything”

Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo

Mickey Arthur has admitted that Pakistan left-arm seamer Mohammad Amir could have managed what he did during his five-year ban a lot better.

Amir, who announced his retirement from Test cricket on Friday, was banned for his involvement in a spot-fixing scandal that shocked the cricketing world in 2010.

While Amir regained his form with the ball at the World Cup after struggling to take wickets for two years, especially in ODIs, Arthur believes that Amir could have used the time he was banned for much more wisely.

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“He had five years out of the game, we mustn’t forget that. In those five years, he didn’t do anything. His body was not up to the rigours of day in, day out Test cricket,” Arthur, who is currently waiting to see if he will be retained as Pakistan’s head coach, told ESPNcricinfo. “We pushed him as much as we could during the England and South Africa series, because he is such a good bowler whom we wanted during those tours. We’ve tried everything we possibly could with Amir.

“He could have managed those five years better. He’d be the first one to acknowledge that. But I understand where he was in his whole life, so it was a tough period for him. I understand all that. I’ve got a very soft spot for Mohammad Amir. As a person and as a cricketer, I admire him greatly. Yes, I am disappointed he won’t be playing Test cricket for us. But it was made in the best interests of his white-ball cricket in mind.”

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