It paves the way for Amir to make his return to Test cricket back at Lord’s when the first Test gets underway on July 14.
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But, if Amir is included in Pakistan’s team in London, having been named in the squad earlier this week, Cook would take the matter in his stride. You don’t get 11 guys at the top of their game the whole time.
Cook said before the Lord’s Test against Sri Lanka, ‘If you’ve been involved in match fixing and if it is proven to be expelled for lifetime.
In recent years, the England and Wales Cricket Board has taken a firm stance on fixing by banning Cook’s former Essex team-mate Danish Kaneria and Lou Vincent for life for their part in corruption in county cricket.
“We want to see a genuine contest whether it is Essex v Lancashire or England v Sri Lanka, it is two teams trying their best to win that game and there aren’t any other motives”.
Over an extraordinary few days in 2010, Broad scored what remains his only Test century, putting on what remains a record stand for the eighth wicket in Tests (332 with Jonathan Trott); but it was the revelations about the activities of Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir that left their indelible mark on the game. From my point of view the punishment should be so harsh it deters people from doing it.
“But I have no problems playing against him at all”, said Cook, a member of the England side that faced Pakistan in the controversial 2010 clash.
“He has served (his punishment), so I’m perfectly happy for him to come back and play”, said Cook, who was the first of Amir’s wickets on the way to figures of 6-84 in that fateful Test six years ago.
Defeats in dead rubbers against Australia and South Africa in the previous year took something of the gloss off outstanding series wins and Cook knows that they must nip Sri Lanka’s second innings renaissance at Durham in the bud. If anything maybe I get slightly complacent for the odd ball, sometimes you get away with it and it goes unnoticed and sometimes it catches up with you and you are made to look very silly.
Amir, who was banned for five years by the International Cricket Council (ICC), has successfully returned to playing for Pakistan after serving his suspension. I don’t think that’s the case, but it may come across that way.
Cook said: “When Steven is on song, I believe he is up there with our three best seamers in the country”.
Root stressed how he is not a player too fussed about personal landmarks and suggested that on occasions he may get caught up in the natural free-scoring pace that he operates at and that encapsulates this England side. The ongoing England-Sri Lanka series has seen Broad displaced as the world´s top-ranked Test bowler by new-ball colleague James Anderson.
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“It gives people chances to show what they can do in England shirts and you want people to feel as comfortable as they can”.
