Mohammad Amir
This is a collection of articles archived for the excellence of their content. |
A timeline
[ From the archives of the Times of India]
AUG 28, 2010: The News of the World reports that Pakistani players Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif were involved in ‘spot-fixing’ during the fourth Test against England at Lord’s. Their claim is based on a sting operation. Agent Mazhar Majeed is arrested on suspicion of conspiracy
SEPT 2: The ICI suspends the three cricketers and charges them under various offences as per its anti-corruption code
OCT 31: ICC rejects an appeal by the three
NOV 3: Pakistan Cricket Board suspendx central contracts of the accused players
FEB 4, 2011: The trio, together with Majeed, is charged with corruption offences by the Crown Prosecution Service, London
FEB 5: ICC bans Butt for ten years (five suspended), Asif for seven years (two suspended) and Amir for five years
JUNE 4: Amir plays in the Surrey league in breach of ICC code
NOV 1: Amir, Butt and Asif convicted by Crown Court.
NOV 3: Amir gets six-month jail sentence
NOV 23: Amir’s appeal against length sentence dismissed
FEB 1, 2012: Amir released after serving half of his sentence
MARCH 19: Amir blames ‘brother’ Butt for ‘luring him into fixing’
Salman But led me to fixing
[ From the archives of the Times of India]
Brother’ butt lured me into fixing: Amir
I didn’t do it for money, Pak fast bowler tells former England captain Atherton
Disgraced Pakistan cricketer Mohammad Amir said that former captain Salman Butt had betrayed their friendship by involving him in the spot-fixing scandal that has seen him banned from cricket and serve time in a British prison. And the talented Amir again apologised to fans in cricket-crazy Pakistan for his role in the scandal by saying: “I ask for their forgiveness. I messed up.”
He was released from jail after serving half of a six-month sentence for his part in the scandal during the Lord’s Test between England and Pakistan in 2010. “I’m so angry with Salman,” said Amir, speaking publicly for the first time since his release in an interview with former England captain Mike Atherton broadcast on Sky Sports on Monday. “He used to call me ‘innocent one’. Like how an elder brother would speak to a younger one,” he added in comments translated by Sky into English from Urdu. “He should have helped me instead of involving me in all this.” The charges were related to bowling deliberate no-balls by Amir and pace partner Asif in the 2010 Lord’s Test against England. What none of the players or Majeed knew at the time was that the scam was part of a sting operation put together by now defunct British newspaper, the News of the World. Amir said he became entangled in the Lord’s plot the day before the Test because of fears over phone contacts he had with a businessman he knew as Ali, which Butt and Majeed exploited in a meeting in the car park of the team hotel. “Suddenly he (Majeed) said ‘oh bro, you’ve got yourself in big trouble, you’re trapped, and your career is at stake’,” Amir recalled. “I said ‘Bro, what’s happened?’. He told me that my calls and texts with Ali had been recorded and had reached the ICC.” Majeed, who said a friend had told him about the ICC “probe” then explained to Amir the way his name could avoid being linked publicly with that of Ali was if he did the agent the favour of bowling two no-balls to order.
Reflecting on how he got into trouble, Amir said: “I was stupid. I should have told someone. I didn’t do it for money.” AFP
2016: Included In Pakistan ODI, T20 Squads For NZ
The Times of India Jan 02 2016
Prasad RS
Chennai
Pacer Included In Pakistan ODI, T20 Squads For NZ; Visa Issue Remains
The New Year couldn't have begun on a better note for Mohammad Amir who was named in the Pakistan squad for the limited-overs leg of the away series against New Zealand later this month, thereby kick-starting a new chapter in the life of the 23-year-old who served a fiveyear ICC ban for his role in the infamous 2010 spot-fixing saga.
Amir's name in the probables list for the tour last month had given enough indications on the line of thinking adopted by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).“We are more than ready to support him, guide him and expect the teammates to do the same,“ PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan had remarked in an interaction with TOI late last month. The news of him being picked for the national side is said to have left Aamir tearyeyed. “I can't tell you how happy I am at being given the opportunity to play for Pakistan again. It's like I am starting all over again. To be part of the Pakistan line-up again is something I dreamt off -all through the troubled times,“ said an emotional Amir, while speaking to TOI, before going on to add, “I would like to thank everyone for their patience and support. God almighty has blessed me with an opportunity to wear the green shirt again.“
Amir's journey back into the Pakistan dressing room may have been fast-tracked by the PCB, but it hasn't been a smooth sail after all. ODI skipper Azhar Ali -in-charge of the team in New Zealand -and senior player Mohammed Hafeez had openly objected to Amir's presence at the preparatory camp at Lahore and had stayed away from it.
It required Shaharyar Khan's intervention to get them on the same page. “I have profusely apologized to not just my teammates but the entire nation. All I need is a chance to prove to them that I have changed,“ mentioned Amir.
That's not all. Aamir is mentally prepared to face the fans ire and taunts when he sets foot on the field. “I know that the New Zealand crowd is always supportive and I don't expect anything untoward from them.The only way to earn the respect and love of my fans is by playing well, taking lot of wickets and winning games for Pakistan.“
The speedster's inclusion in the side is subject to him being issued a New Zealand visa -a hurdle given Amir's criminal conviction for his role in the spot-fixing saga. PCB's chief selector Haroon Rasheed felt in the event of Aamir not getting the visa, Muhammad Irfan will be his replacement in the Twenty20 squad. “If Amir can't make it, then Irfan will replace him in the T20 squad.Irfan isn't originally picked in the T20 squad,“ Rasheed said.
T20 Squad: Shahid Afridi (cap), Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Rizwan, Sohaib Maqsood, Sarfraz Ahmed, Anwar Ali, Imad Wasim, Wahab Riaz, Aamer Yamin, Umar Gul, Umar Akmal, Mohammad Amir, Saad Nasim.ODI squad: Azhar Ali (captain), Ahmed Shehzad, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Asad Shafiq, Babar Azam, Sohaib Maqsood, Zafar Gohar, Imad Wasim, Anwar Ali, Sarfraz Ahmed, Wahab Riaz, Rahat Ali, Mohammad Irfan, Mohammad Rizwan, Mohammad Amir.
