Amir to miss start of the season with Derbyshire

Mohammad Amir will not join-up with Derbyshire for the start of the season and the Club has begun the search for an overseas replacement.

The 31-year-old fast bowler has made the late decision to return to international cricket and is expected to shortly be named in the Pakistan squad for their home series against New Zealand, starting on 18 April. This precedes the ICC T20 World Cup, which begins in June, delaying his arrival at The County Ground until the end of that tournament.

I would like to say thank you to mickey for being understanding @Mickeyarthurcr1 @DerbyshireCCC see you on the other side soon.

— Mohammad Amir (@iamamirofficial) March 24, 2024

Head of Cricket, Mickey Arthur, said: “While this is disappointing on the eve of the season, I respect Mohammad’s decision and following recent conversations with the Pakistan Cricket Board, I know he had aspirations to return to international cricket if the opportunity would arise.

“The Club and player are keen to see him join-up with Derbyshire at the end of the T20 World Cup for those final six Vitality Blast group games and discussions are already underway.

“In terms of an early season replacement, there are a few options we can explore and I’ve had encouraging conversations already today, but we won’t rush into a knee-jerk decision.

“We have a talented squad here at Derbyshire and have strengthened well over the winter. Our pre-season preparations have been the best I’ve seen in my time here and we’ve already got competition in the bowling attack going into April.”