Muhammad Aamer Deals With Australia, Ready For England
Muhammad Aamer was undoubtedly the man of the series for Pakistan, and rightly deserved being crowned the man of the match. The youngster put in a determined and consistent performance which ensured his country the win against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746 after 15 long years.
He displayed maturity beyond his years, as he delivered ball after ball which did more than just threaten the opposition’s wickets and kept them on their toes. The young Pakistan fast bowler didn’t have an easy opposition, the Australians started aggressively, with quick footwork and eagerness to play forward; they were aiming for a win too.
Ricky Ponting, the Australian captain, had his good form brought to an abrupt end by none other than 17 year old Aamer. Aamer left everyone breathless when he took Pontings, Mike Hussey’s and Marcus North’s wicketsw in a 45 minute spell at the start of the third day.
Ponting is not very generous when it comes to praise for the opposition, but Aamer’s performance left the Australian captain impressed, “Aamer continues to improve. I think he's not only got good pace up his sleeve and an ability to swing the ball but I think he actually thinks about the game really smartly as well. He seems to be a lot more mature than what his age would probably suggest as far as bowling's concerned.”
After the two Tests against Australia, Aamer, who has only played in ten Test matches, has matched the records of Asif. According to the International Cricket Council’s rankings, Asif is the world’s number two bowler. Asif and Aamer have similar stats; both have claimed 11 wickets from about the same number of overs, Aamer 75.5 and Asif 76.1 and they have almost similar averages, Aamer 22.27 and Asif 23.
Salman Butt, the Pakistan captain was also full of praise for Aamer. He said he was very fortunate to have led such a talented team, which had developed its own form of new ball attack. “I think if not the world's best they are among the top two or three. Mohammad Aamer is definitely among the world's best fast bowlers. Even Mohammad Asif, with the new ball, I think is the best fast bowler that I've seen for a long time, especially after Glenn McGrath.” Butt told reporters.
Aamer revealed how he enjoyed the experience of Test matches, and especially enjoyed playing at Headingley. “I really enjoyed bowling at Headingley, I wish I could bowl here on this pitch every day,” he said. Critics dismissed his performance on the first day to helpful conditions, but Aamer’s performance was consistent throughout as he took four wickets in the second innings, including that of Ricky Ponting, who was on his way to leading his team to a comeback.
Aamer admitted it wasn’t easy, “When the sun came out, it was tougher for the bowlers and we really had to be patient and consistent with our line and length. I knew I had to pitch it up and look for swing and not bowl short. The coach told me that if I bowled the nagging length where the batsman doesn't know whether to come forward or go back, then that would really challenge them,” he explained.
Aamer has proved himself against the Australian, next are the English. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 take on England this Thursday, Aamer was confident ahead of the match, “Playing against England will present new challenges for me and the other bowlers, but I am sure we can do well. They are a strong team with a varied batting lineup, but if me and the other bowlers bowl well and consistently then I'm sure we can put up a good challenge.” Aamer told reporters.
It is expected that the Pakistan bowlers will find the conditions at Trent Bridge suitable, like they did at Headingley. Like with Australia, Pakistan will be relying on their bowlers, especially Aamer, Mohammad Asif and Umar Gul, since the rest of the team hasn’t really found its form as such.
Tags: