The core of Pakistan’s cricket system, according to former bowler Mohammad Amir, is still sound, and he blames skipper Babar Azam’s attitude for the team’s recent struggles. Amir drew comparisons with the significant influence that former Indian captain MS Dhoni had in developing young players such as Ravindra Jadeja. Like Dhoni did for Jadeja’s development, he underlined the importance of a captain in helping players reach their full potential.
Amir was unreserved in his criticism of Ramiz Raja, the former PCB chief, who favors Babar Azam’s captaincy and calls for structural change. He emphasized that the system was unaltered at the time by pointing to Imran Khan’s 1992 World Cup victory. His position, which echoed his commitment in preserving continuity and leadership influence akin to the Khan era, was unambiguous: the system isn’t the problem; the mindset needs to be adjusted.
“Dhoni never altered the system, despite our claims that he transformed Indian cricket. How long will he continue to give Jadeja and Ashwin opportunities? was a common question. Jadeja is currently regarded as the best all-around player in the world. Amir stated on Haarana Mana Hay’s YouTube show, “MS Dhoni has given them the team.”
“What is the structure? That isn’t a barrier. The task of managing Pakistan cricket has been delegated to five or six people. Among them is also a captain. We had the same method when we won the World Cup in 1992, under Imran Khan. Our squad was a world beater and made it to the finals in 1999. “We employed the same system to win the 2009 T20 World Cup and the 2017 Champions Trophy,” he went on.
My supporter in the Champions Trophy Final was Sarfaraz Khan: Mohammad Amir
The 31-year-old described a memorable incident from the 2017 Champions Trophy final in which he beat out Rumman Raees for a spot in the starting lineup after Sarfaraz Khan, the former captain of Pakistan, pushed hard to get him in. Amir’s brilliant new ball spell hindered India’s chase, making the brilliant work of Hardik Pandya later in the innings pointless. Amir’s outstanding 3 for 16 innings helped Pakistan win by 180 runs and secure the Champions Trophy.
“Back spasms kept me from the semifinal. Rumman Raees had a good game. Amir responded, “No, Saifi bhai. He’s our main bowler, and he’s fit, so he’ll play in the final.”