Tahir to miss BBL, Renegades confirm
Imran Tahir has withdrawn from the BBL owing to personal reasons, the Melbourne Renegades have confirmed.
His withdrawal comes as a huge blow to the Renegades, who regarded the South African legspinner as one of their premier bowlers.
Doubts existed over whether Tahir will arrive in time for the BBL after his initial flight Down Under was delayed, and owing to the mandatory 14-day quarantine in a hotel room necessitated by the coronavirus restrictions in Australia.
Opportunities for other players
Prior to the start of the new BBL season, the Renegades signed a host of international spinners, with Mohammad Nabi, Noor Ahmad, and Imad Wasim joining Tahir in the roster.
Speaking to ESPN, coach Michael Klinger was disappointed not to have one of his star bowlers available, but said Tahir’s absence will provide opportunities for the other spinners in the squad.
“Unfortunately, Imran is not coming for personal reasons,” Klinger said.
“He’s a great player so it is a loss. But at the same time we’ve seen Noor Ahmad a couple of games ago, a bowler who people haven’t seen that much, it might actually work in our favour.
“He’ll now be able to play a fair chunk of that back end of the season, with Imad Wasim. Nabi has to go home for international duty.
“It is a loss but at the same time what a huge opportunity for young Noor to come in and have a huge impact on the BBL.”
The 15-year-old Amhad made his BBL debut against Hobart Hurricanes and impressed with figures of 1/27 in his four overs.
However, he missed the Renegades’ record-breaking losses to Sydney Thunder and Sydney Sixers.
Nevertheless, Klinger claimed the mood in the camp remains positive.
“The mood is still pretty good because we know what we’re capable of doing,” he continued.
“We saw in game one how well we played. We know we’ve got the ability in the group to really come out and perform well.”
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