The retirement of Pakistan’s Mohammad Amir from international cricket, in December 2020, took many by surprise. The 28-year-old speedster called it quits after being overlooked for the New Zealand tour. Since then, he had taken verbal shots at head coach Misbah-ul-Haq and bowling coach Waqar Younis, while also exposing the poor dressing room environment within the national setup.
While Amir shared his side of the story soon after calling it quits from the highest level, Misbah-ul-Haq also recently opened up in this regard and shifted the blame towards the speedster.
“There was talk about Waqar Younis related to Amir but there is no truth in it at all. There were six [association] coaches as selectors, me as chief selector, and then there was a captain. So this is absolutely not possible, [the idea] that one person out of all could have influenced the decision,” Misbah was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.
“Nobody was supporting his selection on the basis of performance. I have no idea why he made up everything and tried to give this whole scenario a context that is out of proportion. For him, it was a simple method: go back and prove his form and get back in the team and everything else is irrelevant,” he had added.
To this, Amir has once again responded and hit back at Misbah and Waqar for their roles in his early retirement. “I was not dropped from the side because of my performance. What they [Misbah and Waqar] say on media is different from the actual facts,” said Amir as quoted by Cricket Pakistan.
He further opined, “Waqar Younis is a legend while Misbah-ul-Haq was a great captain but coaching is an entirely different thing. You have to learn and get the necessary education regarding coaching before joining this field.” He added,
“I’m not saying that PCB should remove them from their respective roles, but I can’t play for the national side with the current mindset of the coaching staff.”
