2017 CPL: 5 players who can make a comeback to T20Is
Eight matches have already been played at the 2017 Caribbean Premier League with the St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots the only teams who have been unbeaten in the tournament while St. Lucia Zouks and the Guyana Amazon Warriors are yet to register a win in the competition.
Many players who are out of favour with their national teams always look for a domestic league to pave their way back in, and quite a few players will be looking to make a comeback to T20Is by performing well in the CPL.
Here are 5 players who could make a comeback to T20 internationals provided they perform well in the CPL.
#5. Mohammad Sami
The 36-year old pacer had become a very reliable bowling partner for Shoaib Akhtar following the retirements of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis. However, poor form led him to be dropped from the Pakistan team and he has made sporadic appearances for the Pakistan side over the last decade.
Sami last featured for Pakistan during the 2016 World T20 where he played three matches for Pakistan, picking up four wickets at an average of 23.25 and at a very high economy rate of 9.3. His spell of 0/53 against Australia resulted in his dropping from the Pakistan side.
However, Sami has performed fairly well in the domestic T20 tournaments over the past 9 months that include an economy rate of only 5.88 in his 9 matches at the Bangladesh Premier League which was followed by being the joint 3rd highest wicket-taker at the Pakistan Premier League with 12 wickets at an economy of 6.96.
Mohammad Sami is in the Jamaica Tallawahs squad for the CPL and had a disastrous start to his tournament as he went for 48 runs from his four overs in the reigning champions’ tournament opener against Barbados Tridents.
However, he rebounded brilliantly by bowling a match-winning spell of 4/12 in the Tallawahs’ return leg against the Tridents and bowled another economical spell of 1/22 in the Jamaican franchise’s win against the Trinbago Knight Riders yesterday.
Hence, all isn’t over for Mohammad Sami as he can still find a place in Pakistan’s T20 squad if he continues to perform well in all his other matches in the Caribbean.
With age not on his side, an international comeback will not be easy but he can inspire himself by taking a page out of Ashish Nehra’s book and breaking back into the Pakistan T20 team.