Months after he announced his retirement from international cricket, former Pakistan speedster Mohammad Amir had revealed the reasons for his retirement. While Amir earlier had retired from international cricket in 2020 claiming he was ‘mentally tortured’ and given ‘shabby treatment’ by team management, the pacer had made a return to international cricket before the T20 World Cup last year. While Amir was Pakistan’s joint highest wicket-taker with seven wickets in the tournament, the 33-year-old was not considered by PCB post the T20 World Cup.
“When I came to play in the World Cup, I left my county contract. Whatever I played in the World Cup, I ended up spending more money myself. My trainer travelled with me, and I bore all those expenses personally. Anyway, that’s a separate matter. After the T20 World Cup ended, no one even talked to me, no one told me about any plans. A wise man needs no further explanation. If I’m not in the plan, then I have to think about myself. Now I’ve made up my mind — thank you very much to international cricket,” Amir told Geo News in an interview.
Amir had announced his retirement in December 2014 with him and Imad Wasim taking the retirement within a day of each other’s decision. Amir had played in 36 Test matches taking 119 wickets, 61 ODIs taking 81 wickets and 62 T20Is taking 71 wickets for Pakistan.
“After careful consideration I have taken the difficult decision to retire from international cricket. These decisions are never easy, but are inevitable. I feel this is the right time for the next generation to take the baton and elevate Pakistan cricket to new heights.” Amir had posted on X in December.
The 33-year-old is now playing for Quetta Gladiators in PSL and also shared his thoughts on Pakistan batsman Babar Azam’s current lean patch.
“Babar Azam is Pakistan’s best cricketer, no doubt about that. But right now, he’s going through a bad patch — and it’s been a bit too long. Every player faces a rough phase, but once Babar gets out of it, he’ll score big runs. I’ve noticed that Babar is arriving a little late to the ball, and because of that, he’s struggling with shot selection,” added Amir.
The pacer also shared how cricket has mellowed down in present times. “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,” said Amir.
