Amir can still be considered for the World Cup: Inzamam

Monitoring Desk

KARACHI: Pakistan’s Chief Selector, InzamamUlHaq said if Mohammad Amir can regain his form in the ODI series against England, he can still be considered for the World Cup squad.

The left-arm fast bowler, who played an integral role in Pakistan’s Champions Trophy triumph, has been axed from the preliminary World Cup squad, which raised eyebrows around the world. “We still have a chance [to select Mohammad Amir],” said InzamamUlHaq while talking to media. “He is a senior bowler and has got quality, if he gets his form back and performs well in the England series then we can consider him.”

However, Pakistan’s World Cup 1992 hero brushed off the argument that Amir should be selected for the mega cricketing event just on the basis of experience.

“We can compromise on performance a bit because of experience and other add-ons, but still performance matters,” he said. “If Amir will be in the side, with his experience and quality, the captain will be happy and it will benefit Pakistan.” On the other hand, Haq justified the selection of Mohammad Hasnain and Abid Ali, who have played 3 and 2 ODIs respectively, saying that there were inexperienced players in the World Cup 1992 squad that made a lot of difference.

“I had played 6 to 7 matches [before the World Cup 1992], ZahidFazal had 8 to 10 matches under his belt, there were IqbalSikander and WasimHaider, Amir Sohail was also inexperienced, so it is all about the combination,” he said.

The former skipper did not want to select all the fast bowlers with similar pace, he believes the extra speed of Hasnain will add variety to Pakistan’s bowling arsenal. InzamamUlHaq believes that the team has got all the ingredients to win the global cricketing event, however, you cannot be sure about any team that they will become the champions.

“Pakistan are one of the four favourite teams to win the World Cup, I am not saying it, all the experts have this view,” he said. The mega cricketing event will take place in England and Wales from May 30th to July 14th, where Australia will defend their title against the nine other competing teams.