ICC, PCB should decide Aamer's return: Misbah

New Orleans Sun (IANS) Friday 3rd February, 2012

Pakistan cricket captain Misbah-ul-Haq has said it was for the International Cricket Council (ICC) and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to decide if fast bowler Mohammad Aamer, who was released from jail Wednesday, can return to international cricket after serving his five-year ban.

The 19-year-old Aamer was Wednesday released from jail in London because of good behaviour after serving half his six-month sentence for spot-fixing with two team-mates, former captain Salman Butt and fast bowler Mohammed Asif, during a Test match against England in 2010.

Aamer has been banned by the ICC until September 2015, but he will be appealing to have his suspension overturned.

Misbah said that once Aamer serves his ban then his future would be clear. By the time Aamer finishes his ban he would be 24 years old and can still make a come-back.

'As a cricketer you feel sad about such incidents but you cannot do anything about it. Once he is cleared, once he is available, only then we will see what happens' said Misbah, when asked Thursday about the fast bowlers international comeback.

'It's totally up to the management and what ICC and the (Pakistan) cricket board decide. We have nothing to do with that,' he said.

England captain Andrew Strauss also concurred with Misbah.

'It's not up to me to decide these things. It's up to the ICC to decide how long the bans should be. The deterrent should be very strong to stop these guys doing this again. They've suffered quite badly, they've obviously been to prison, but it's for the ICC to decide (what happens next).

'It's not my job to hand out bans or otherwise. All I've said all along is that the deterrent for match-fixing or spot-fixing should be as strong as it possibly can be to make sure people don't do it in the future,' he said.