Mohammad Amir cites the reason behind his dip in form

Ace Pakistani pacer Mohammad Amir has faced the heat of the national selectors in the recent times. It was not long ago when Amir was a regular face in the Pakistani lineup across the three formats of the game. But a poor show in the Asia Cup 2018 saw Amir lose his place in the national side across the three formats. Amir failed to pick a single wicket in the Asia Cup this year.

He was subsequently not seen in the Pakistan Test squad which beat Australia 1-0 in the UAE. And now, when the Men in Green beat the Aussies in the T20Is, Amir was still not seen in the squad. Recently, as per the quotes in Cricbuzz, Mohammad Amir reflected back at the potential reasons that resulted in a dip in his bowling form.

Amir noted that his confidence has dipped down and that has impacted his performances big time. Furthermore, he admitted that the mental and the physical fatigue has taken a heavy toll on the way he has fared up in recent times.

“I was feeling that I was lacking confidence. As a professional sportsman, the first thing that you lose is confidence when you realise you are unable to perform. The skills remain the same even then. They are the same with which you had taken wickets earlier. But, when you are unable to perform for two, three, four games, you go down mentally and your confidence takes a hit which hampers your performance,” Mohammad Amir quoted.

“It was both mental and physical [pressure] in my case. I was feeling that I needed rest as I was playing cricket regularly for the past three years. It is good for me that I am here [in domestic]. I can now enhance my skills and rebuild my confidence… So far everything is going well. I have been playing four-day matches and have also played one-dayers. I am feeling good and can feel my body recovering. I gave my body rest after the Asia Cup,” he added further.

Discussions with the men who matter

Adding further on the same line, Mohammad Amir revealed that he has had good discussions with the big men of Pakistan cricket in this regard. He noted that he has spoken to the chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq and the national head coach Mickey Arthur about his workload. Amir cited the example of Mitchell Starc to stress on the fact that no cricketer is born as a super human and fatigue is just part and parcel of the game.

Commenting more, the pacer remarked that the discussions had a positive outcome as the senior officials agreed to manage the workload efficiently for him. Amir reiterated that the mental and physical fatigue can indeed hamper the preparations and the performances of an athlete and this phenomenon is quite natural.

“I had a proper discussion with Inzi bhai, Saifi bhai and Mickey Arthur about my workload and we talked about every aspect of it. Playing three formats is not very easy for any fast bowler. Mitchell Starc just returned and got a niggle after playing just two matches. Nobody is superman,” mentioned the 26-year old.

“Our discussions ended on a positive note as both Inzi and Mickey decided to manage my workload efficiently. There was no communication gap amongst us and there were very honest discussion about this… There’s so much cricket these days that it becomes very difficult for a fast bowler to recover and work on physical fitness. Sometimes the mental and physical fatigue keeps a batsman or bowler from delivering. As a professional, you have to be careful about your body: when you think that you need a break, you should take a break,” he mentioned further.

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