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Amir dismisses retirement rumour

Pakistan quick denies report that he will retire from Test cricket, maintains desire to play all three formats

Star Pakistan quick Mohammad Amir has denied he has planned to quit Test cricket, saying the rumours regarding his future in the five-day game are "ridiculous".

Unsubstantiated media reports in May claimed the left-armer was considering standing down from the longest form of the game in order to prolong his white-ball career.

In an interview in Sky Sports this week, Amir put an end to any speculation about his Test future.

"I have no idea what the thinking was behind this ridiculous story," he said.

"I'm fit, strong and healthy and have no intentions of quitting any format.

"What I had said was that as a cricketer you have to take care of your body and look after your fitness levels and someone altered that statement and quoted me as saying that I wanted to quit playing Test cricket.

"It's totally untrue and as long as I am fit I want to play in all formats."

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Having served a five-year ban from the game due to a spot-fixing controversy in 2016, Amir returned to the international game last year and has taken 43 wickets at 43 in 14 Tests during a mixed period for Pakistan's Test side.

Led by Misbah-ul-Haq, Pakistan claimed the world No.1 Test ranking after drawing their series against England in the UK but have plummeted down the rankings since then after a streak of six consecutive defeats and two losses to the lowly-ranked West Indies. They are now ranked sixth in the world rankings, just one point clear of Sri Lanka in seventh.

While Amir's figures since returning from his ban are similar to the start of his career (he took 51 wickets in 14 Tests at 2009 before he was suspended in 2010) he concedes that he has been unable to replicate the form that saw him burst onto the scene as a teenager in 2009.

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But he says he's showing signs of getting back to his absolute best.

"I was not under any false impressions that my comeback would be easy and that I would hit the ground running," he said.

"I never touched a cricket ball during my ban yet people expected me to come back to international cricket and make an instant impact. That was an impossible task and yet critics were writing me off straight after my comeback.

"It's been about 18 months since my comeback and I think I am now showing the results of the hard work that I have put in.

"People need to be patient and I had to be patient, too, as these things take time."