Amir cannot afford to put a foot wrong: Intikhab Alam

Pakistan cricket team manager and former player Intikhab Alam has stated that Mohammad Amir cannot afford to put a foot wrong in the upcoming tour of England. The latter was involved in the 2010 spot-fixing controversy along with teammates Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif. Amir has certainly been lucky enough to get a second bite at the cherry.

After serving his subsequent five-year ban from international cricket, the 21-year old has now been restored to the Pakistan side and has been in fine touch ever since. He terrorized batsmen in the Asia Cup T20 before going on to make his mark in the 2016 World T20.

“Amir cannot afford to put a foot wrong,” said Alam on Friday (June 17), a day before the side’s departure to England. “Amir has to prove a point to the cricketing world that there will be no slip-up, make up for the five years he lost and do justice to his talent by bringing laurels.”

Alam also added that he feared a provocation from the England fans who are expected to be present at the time. “I fear people will provoke him on and off the field, but he has been told to remain calm and does not react,” told Alam. “That happened on his first tour [New Zealand] when he was fielding on the boundary line but they die down once you don’t react.”

Also read – It is a big tour for Pakistan: Misbah-ul-Haq

When Pakistan toured New Zealand in the fall of 2015, Mark McLeod, the stadium announcer, for the third T20I played between New Zealand against Pakistan, had taunted Amir by playing a cash register sound effect before the start of one of Amir’s overs. “The message is clear for all the players and that is there will be no compromise on discipline and zero tolerance,” the former Pakistan all-rounder said. “Amir will have to follow a strict code of conduct which stops him from meeting people and focus on cricket.

“Since his return, Amir has been very good and has shown remorse for what he did. People expect miracles from him but he has been very good on the three tours he has had so far and we hope he will deliver to the best of his abilities in England.”