Repentant Amir should be forgiven

After watching banned fast bowler Mohammad Amir's first national television appearance since his return to Pakistan, Faras Ghani writes in the Express Tribune that Amir should be forgiven and lent a helping hand.

That live interview was no different — he seemed smarter, more mature and paced himself nicely. There was no stretching over the limits — an act that started the rot — and it seemed that the counselling he spoke of, both religious and of mending his ways, had hit home. Much needed after the gravity of the sin committed which, given the heights he had reached, had left the followers annoyed, then alarmed and finally aghast. The stench of betrayal as the allegations turned into conviction now felt like an aura of trust. The hosts, and some callers tried their best to make him falter on-air, working hard to entice him into a false shot but Amir seemed to have worked well on his defences and accuracy.