Michael Hussey impressed by ‘unbelievable’ Amir after return from spot-fixing ba

Michael Hussey impressed by ‘unbelievable’ Amir after return from spot-fixing ban
DECEMBER 10, 201610:20AM



Alex Blair
news.com.au


MOHAMMED Amir didn’t have the a great start to his Test career.

The then 17-year-old Pakistani left-armer arrived on Australia’s shores in 2009 to take on a much different home side, and boy did he impress. For most young players, sending down a 145km/h delivery and troubling Australian Test batsmen is an achievement only obtained after putting on a bit of muscle and reaching your 20s, but Amir isn’t your average young gun.
The Pakistani prodigy wowed the crowd with his fast bowling, causing the legendary Ricky Ponting and all-rounder Shane Watson a headache throughout the Test and ODI series that summer — but it all ended in chaos.

Amir, among other Pakistani players, was convicted of spot-fixing throughout the series by deliberately bowling no-balls at specific points in the match. The ICC suspended him for five years while English judges sent him to jail for six months after being found guilty of corruption.
Fast-forward to 2016 and Amir looks a different man — but his pace and determination hasn’t taken a hit.

Amir sent a curt warning to Australian batsmen in a tour match against the Cricket Australia XI in Cairns this week. Amir destroyed the CA XI batsmen with a brutal spell of fast bowling, finishing with economical figures of 3/15 from his 10 overs.
Michael Hussey was one of the men to have faced Amir’s thunderbolts the last time he visited Australia. He says the 24-year-old has redeemed himself after his rocky past and will cause Aussie batsmen a wave of problems at the Gabba next week.

“He’s an outstanding talent,” Hussey said in an interview with cricket.com.au. “I know he’s been through a lot in a short career really, but I’m personally happy to see him back playing international cricket. I feel like he’s done his time and he’s a class bowler.
“Again, he’s someone that bowls extremely well with the new ball but is also very good with the old ball as well. He’s highly skilled, along with some of their other left-armers, so it’s going to be a great contest between bat and ball.

“We’ve always thought that the Pakistanis have amazingly talented players. They always seem to come onto the scene and you think, ‘Wow, this guy’s unbelievable’, and Mohammad Amir was no different. He was young, talented, keen to do well, passionate sort of guy.

“He just kept running in hard all day being young and fresh. He certainly gave us a good battle out there. It was a shame he had to go through that tough period but hopefully he comes back bigger and better.”
Hussey went on to say the touring side could cause a major upset on Australian soil this summer. “Of course they can [win in Australia],” he said. “Australia is going to have something to say about that though, and we’ve got a great record.”
Hussey weighed in on Brisbane’s first day-night Test, saying it would be a major shake-up for both parties with both swing and seam on offer for the fast bowlers.

“A day-night Test at the Gabba is going to be challenging for both teams, and so it’ll be interesting to see which team can make the adjustments and adapt to those conditions quicker. “The first Test of any series is always really important, so if you can get off to a winning start, whether it be Australia or Pakistan, then you’ve got the confidence to move forward. So whoever wins that first one will have a huge advantage going into the rest of the series.

“I can’t wait — you can’t pick it — but I think it’s going to be a greatly contested series.”

This young man is amazing.