Usama Mir, a leg-spinner from Pakistan, has discussed his experience receiving a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) despite not being allowed to play in the T20 Blast earlier this year.
It is important to note that, in accordance with a recent PCB clause intended for players under central contract, a player may play in up to two T20 leagues in addition to the Pakistan Super League (PSL). As the season’s contract ran from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, and Mir had previously played in the Big Bash League in December and the 2023 T20 Blast in August, it would have been perfect if the PCB verdict had prevented him from playing in any T20 league.
But since he had only departed the BBL after five games, not the entire season, due to his selection in the T20I squad for the New Zealand series, he thought he could still play in the T20 Blast, which started on May 30, 2024.
After being left out of Pakistan’s T20 World Cup squad, Usama Mir asked the NOC to play the T20 Blast, according to his response to the media’s rumours.
According to claims in the media, Usama travelled alone. I own a car and a house in Sheffield, if that’s necessary. Why then would I have visited the residence the County granted me or made use of their amenities? I went because, well, I was allowed to. After being cut from the T20 World Cup team, I applied for the NOC,” Mir was cited by the Wisden as saying.
Subsequently, he disclosed that he had received personal notification from the selectors indicating that he may fly to England and that he would receive the NOC for his involvement in the T20 Blast.
“The selectors, Wahab Riaz, Abdur Razzaq, and Mohammad Yousuf, called me and instructed me to travel to England. The selectors all responded “no” when Wahab bhai asked if they objected to Usama participating in the T20 Blast. They told me I could go [to England] the following day and I would receive the NOC, so I bought my tickets and left,” Mir said.
I did my utmost to argue that the County would harm my relationship: Usama Mir
Mir described how everything went wrong, starting with his training in the UK and continuing to ask the PCB for the NOC, which was eventually turned down even though they had previously promised it to him verbally. His plea ultimately proved ineffective since Worcestershire was unable to accept him once the NOC was rejected.
“On the final day of submissions, I was informed that my NOC had been denied. I had started my practice and had been enquiring about the NOC. I questioned why, and they informed me that I had already taken two NOCs. I did my best to convince them that my relationship with the County would be destroyed. With one month to go before the new season started, I enquired as to whether they would accept this as the NOC. It was cancelled, but I didn’t come here on my own,” Mir continued.
For the 2024 competition, Mir had to give way to West Indian leg-spinner Hayden Walsh. Worcestershire’s 2024 campaign ended very badly, as they took eighth place in the nine-team North Group with just four wins in 14 games.
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