Comedy of errors as Mohammad Amir runs himself out
Day 4 of the Pakistan vs West Indies third test match. Pakistan under pressure at 175 for 6. With the lead at 118 runs, in walks Mohammad Amir to join a well set Azhar Ali to try and save the test match for Pakistan.
Amir, who has shown in the past that he can hang around with the willow in hand, started poorly, as he was dropped on his third ball of the innings by West Indies captain Jason Holder, off the bowling of 19-year old Alzarri Joseph. It wasn’t the easiest of chances, it came quickly at Holder, and he couldn’t hold on to the opportunity. Amir gets off lucky.
Four overs later, with Azhar Ali dismissed and Wahab Riaz at the crease, Amir gets another life as close-in fielder Leon Johnson grasses a catch off the bowling of off-spinner Devendra Bishoo. Amir must have been thinking it was his lucky day.
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Two balls later, he gets an over-pitched delivery from Bishoo, and he goes for the big shot over long-on. He connects well and it should have crossed the ropes, if not for a sensational effort on the boundary line by Roston Chase. It was high, to his right-side and Chase leaped and took it one-handed only to realise that he would hit the rope on his way down. So, he released the ball back inside the ropes.
All this while Amir thought he had cleared the man and didn't bother to run. He was posing for the cameras before reality hit him and what followed was hara-kiri.
The left-arm paceman who was slowly making his way to the non-striker Wahab Riaz to punch gloves after he thought he had sent the ball over the ropes, started to scamper for a single once he realised what Chase had done. He was never going to make it, but he ran and after a few steps, his bat too slipped out of his hands, making it even more difficult for him to reach the other end.
Chase, who had gathered himself by now, sent in a perfect throw which captain Holder collected right next to the stumps and took the bails off catching Amir way short of his crease.
It was a hilarious moment on the pitch, with confusion clouding over Amir’s better judgement, leading to a bizarre dismissal. However, the Pakistani dressing room will have failed to see the funny side, as they were left tottering at 192 for 8.
Pakistan were bowled out for a lowly 208, leaving the Windies with a target of 152 runs to chase.