Wahab Riaz Hints Mohammad Amir Could Return From Retirement To Play For Pakistan Again

Mohammad Amir had announced his retirement from international cricket in 2020, citing the "shabby treatment" that he received from the then Pakistan cricket team management.

Mohammad Amir slips as he bowls during the Twenty20 cricket match between Australia and Pakistan at Optus Stadium in Perth on November 8, 2019.

Source : Tony ASHBY / AFP

In a huge claim made by star Pakistan cricketer Wahab Riaz, the fast bowler hinted that left-arm pacer Mohammad Amir could return from retirement to play for the country once again

For the unversed, Amir had announced his retirement from international cricket in 2020, citing the "shabby treatment" that he received from the then Pakistan cricket team management. 

While he had gone on record saying that he won't play international cricket again owing to the "mental torture" by the then management,  Riaz has now claimed that Amir could well make a comeback into the national team, 2 years after his decision to hang up his boots.

"We may see Mohammad Amir coming back to play for Pakistan once again," Wahab said in an interview to Samaa News as quoted by Cricket Pakistan.

"We have Shaheen Afridi and Haris Rauf but the other three spots are still available. Bowlers like Hasan (Ali), (Shahnawaz) Dahani, Naseem (Shah), (Muhammad) Wasim are fighting for it. Amir may come back, too," he added.

Notably, Ramiz Raja was sacked as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman last week. After his departure, a 14-member committee headed by Najam Sethi has been appointed to govern the cricketing affairs of the country for the next months.

PCB constitution has been bulldozed: Raja

The order of Sethi's appointment and Raja's sacking has been approved by the country's Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif himself. Even though the formal approval from the federal cabinet is awaited, Raja said that he wasn't even allowed to pack his stuff from the PCB
office.

"To accommodate one person, Sethi to be precise, they had to change the entire constitution (of the PCB). I have not seen this anywhere in the world. It has been done in the middle of a season, when teams are visiting Pakistan. They have changed the chief selector, who had played Test cricket. At 2 am in the night, he (Sethi) tweets that Ramiz Raja is gone. This is my playing field. It hurts," the former PCB chairman said in a video uploaded on his YouTube Channel.

"It has been made out as if a messiah (Sethi) has come, who will take the game to new heights. We know what he is up to. He wants limelight at any cost. He has nothing to do with cricket, and has never lifted a bat. They have changed me midway. In the middle of the season, they are bringing Micky Arthur. Saqlain Mushtaq's tenure was ending anyway in January. Saqlain has played over 50 (49) Tests, he is a legend. This is no way to treat the cricketers," he added.