Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
CHAMPIONS TROPHY FINAL MO BAD NEWS FOR INDIA
Amir is the hero with three early wickets as Pakistan stroll to glory
MOHAMMAD AMIR completed his cricketing redemption with a devastating spell of fast bowling to win the Champions Trophy for Pakistan. Free from the back spasm that kept him out of the semi-final against England, Amir sprinted to the crease and let fly with a series of seaming thunderbolts that were just too hot for the Indians. The 25-year-old left-armer ripped out the heart of India’s reply with three early wickets, including the scalp of Virat Kohli, the finest run-chaser the game has ever seen. And from 33-3, the chances of India getting anywhere near a target of 339 were gone, despite the late efforts of Hardik Pandya. The margin in the end was 180 runs, the biggest win Pakistan have had over their nearest and fiercest rivals and what a time to do it. There were other heroes such as Fakhar Zaman (above), who picked the final of a major tournament to score his first one-day hundred, and Shadab Khan, the 18-year-old legspinner who claimed two wickets. Hasan Ali is another who has lit up the tournament and he delivered yet again with three more wickets, but with thousands of Indian fans streaming for the exits well before the end it was hard not to look kindly on Amir, who let his skill shine on the biggest stage for all the right reasons. Here in the city where he was exposed by a spot-fixing sting, Amir dismissed the three most dangerous batsmen in India’s line-up with Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan falling either side of Kohli. “I think that was the start we needed,” said Amir. “We were looking for that because Shikhar, Rohit and Kohli were in tremendous form. I was looking for early wickets and I did it! “I think this is all about our whole teamwork, about the batting, the bowling and the fielding and all about momentum. After the South Africa game we’ve been outstanding. It gave us momentum and we have continued that way.” Their coach Mickey Arthur, who never made it to a final with South Africa but now has a medal, added: “What I know about Mohammad Amir is that he is a big-match player. “When the game is on the line he doesn’t shy away from the pressure situations and he’s got a proper big-match temperament.” Some may begrudge Amir his return to the limelight, but to see the joy he gave flag-waving Pakistanis, who turned Kennington into Karachi for the day, was to see the power of international sport for a nation denied that privilege since 2008. In that time they have won a World T20 crown at Lord’s, had a spell as the No.1 Test side and have now claimed the second-biggest one-day trophy. Their captain Sarfraz Ahmed said: “Hopefully other teams will come to play in Pakistan now.”