August 13, 2024

‘I was permitted to go. Hence, I went’ – Usama Mir opens up on PCB’s NOC denial for T20 Blast -T20

“They [selectors] told me I would get the NOC the next day and I could go [to England], and accordingly, I booked my tickets and went, ” Mir mentioned.

Usama Mir, a Pakistani leg-spinner, has spoken out over the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) denial of his No Objection Certificate (NOC) regarding his involvement in the T20 Blast earlier this year.

It is important to note that a player may play in a maximum of two T20 leagues in addition to the Pakistan Super League (PSL) under a recent PCB stipulation intended for centrally contracted players. Ideally, Mir was no longer eligible to play in any T20 league as per the PCB judgment, as the season’s contract ran from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024. He had already participated in the 2023 T20 Blast in August and the Big Bash League in December.

He thought he could still play in the T20 Blast this season, which started on May 30, 2024, because he was part of the T20I squad for the New Zealand series. However, he departed the BBL after only five matches rather than the entire season.

In response to the media’s rumors, Mir said that after being left off Pakistan’s T20 World Cup roster, he asked the NOC to play in the T20 Blast.

“In the media, there were reports that Usama went by himself. If I had to, I have my own house in Sheffield and my car. Why would I then have gone to the house that the County gave me or used their facilities? Obviously, I was permitted to go, hence I went. I was dropped from the T20 World Cup squad following which I requested for the NOC,” Mir was quoted as saying by Wisden.

Then he disclosed that he had received a personal message from the selectors saying he could fly to England and that they would guarantee he would receive the NOC to play in the T20 Blast.

“I got a call from the selectors, including Wahab Riaz, Abdur Razzaq, and Mohammad Yousuf, and they told me to go to England. Wahab bhai asked the selectors if they had an objection to Usama playing [in the T20 Blast] and they all said no. They told me I would get the NOC the next day and I could go [to England], and accordingly, I booked my tickets and went.” mentioned Mir.

I tried my best and argued that my relation with the County would be ruined: Usama Mir.

Mir gave a detailed account of how everything went wrong, starting with his training in the UK and ending with his repeated requests for the NOC from the PCB being turned down at the last minute despite the earlier verbal assurance. Ultimately, his appeal was in vain when the NOC was turned down, keeping him from becoming a Worcestershire member.

“I started my practice and kept asking about the NOC and on the last day of submissions, I was told my NOC was declined. When I asked why, they said I had already taken two NOCs. I tried my best and argued that my relation with the County would be ruined. A month was left for the new season to begin, so I asked if they would consider this as the NOC for the upcoming season. I didn’t come on my own here, but it was canceled,” added Mir.

The 2024 edition saw Worcestershire finish in eighth position in the nine-team North Group with just four wins in 14 games, forcing them to trade Mir in favor of West Indian leg-spinner Hayden Walsh.

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