Pakistan chief selector Inzamam-ul-Haq has reacted strongly to Alastair Cook’s comments on Mohammad Amir. Speaking to Geo News, the former national skipper even hinted at a conspiracy to put the left-arm pacer under pressure by involving mind games.
A furious Inzamam claimed, “I see this as the start of a campaign to start pressurizing Amir. Because not only England but even Australia and South Africa see him as a threat. And he can be a match-winner in England.”
Questioning Cook’s intentions, the 46-year-old lashed out, “How would the England captain feel if they were in Pakistan and our captain made a similar statement about some player?“
Earlier, the England skipper had revealed that he did not believe in giving second chances to tainted cricketers and opined, “That is part and parcel, that when you do something like that there are more consequences than just the punishment – that is something for him to cope with, whatever comes his way.”
‘Best to keep Amir away from the crowd’
Wary of possible taunts from the English crowd, Inzamam also remained confident of Amir making a successful Test comeback. He hoped, “I think it would be a good idea if Amir was not made to field at the boundaries because he will then face hostile comments and remarks. It is best to keep him away from the crowd at the start.”
However, the veteran insisted that the situation was not all grim for the seamer and declared, “But to me there is sympathy for Amir in England and the best way he can answer is to perform in the series and I am confident he can do it.”
After making a decent impression as head coach of the Afghanistan team, Inzamam had to vacate the post when he was appointed chief selector by the Pakistan Cricket Board. With the England tour being his inaugural task, there were plenty of things to be considered before zeroing on the final squad.
Inzamam believed, “There was pressure on me because I had not seen much first class cricket and whatever cricket I saw was on television. And it was my first assignment as chief selector. But we have tried to select the best possible squad and I am pretty sure they will do well.”
He added, “I am confident we have the management to handle things well and this will be a controversy-free tour.”
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