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Former Pakistan pacer Mohammad Amir has opened up on his retirement from international cricket, expressing that he felt sidelined and overlooked after the conclusion of the T20 World Cup 2024.
In an exclusive interview with a Private news channel, Amir shed light on various aspects of the game. The 33-year-old pacer expressed his disappointment over the way he was treated after the World Cup.
“After the T20 World Cup ended, no one even talked to me. No one told me if I was part of the future plans, ” he said.
“A wise person understands the signs — if you’re not in the plans, then you have to think about yourself. That’s exactly what I did. I’ve made up my mind now — thank you very much, international cricket,” Amir further remarked.
Amir reflected on sacrificing his county contract to play in the T20 World Cup, emphasizing the expenses he incurred during the mega event.
“I came to play the World Cup after leaving my county deal. Honestly, I ended up spending more money than I made. I travelled with my trainer, and all those expenses came out of my own pocket. But that’s a different matter,” he revealed.
Mohammad Amir heaped praise on Babar Azam, admitting his rough patch and expressed confidence in his comeback. He further highlighted a technical flaw in the ace batter’s batting.
“Babar is the best cricketer Pakistan has right now — there’s no doubt about it. But he’s going through a rough patch, and it’s lasted a bit too long. I’ve noticed he’s been late on the ball lately, which is affecting his shot selection,” Amir observed.
The left-arm pacer emphasized an aggressive mindset on the field, noting that there are no friendships or seniors on the ground.
“If someone hits a shot off my first ball, I’m not going to go hug him—I’ll obviously say something to him to throw him off focus,” Amir said.
“In the past, cricket used to be fierce. Sir Vivian Richards is with us—ask him about it. Back then, it felt like someone might actually hit you with the bat on the field. Playing aggressively used to be part of the beauty of the game. You had to mentally unsettle the batter to break their concentration,” he concluded.
For the unversed, Mohammad Amir had previously announced his retirement from international cricket back in 2020 at the age of 28, citing differences with the then-team management.
However, he, along with Imad Wasim, came out of international retirement in 2024 and declared availability for the ICC T20 World Cup 2024.
Subsequently, their presence did not help, as Pakistan crashed out of the tournament from the group stage, mainly due to their gut-wrenching defeats against the United States of America (USA) and their arch-rivals, India.
The pacer had once again announced his retirement from international cricket in December 2024, shattering the hopes of fans who had been awaiting his comeback.
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