Misbah-ul-Haq praises Mohammad Amir after last-ball win in BPL 2015

Amir recorded his career-best T20 figures in BPL opener

Mohammad Amir’s career-best T20 figures might not have been enough to help his side claim victory in the opening match of the Bangladesh Premier League, but the fast bowler drew plenty of praise from Misbah-ul-Haq, reports ESPN Cricinfo.

Amir‘s Chittagong Vikings were on the course for the win, after scoring 187 and having the Rangpur Riders tottering at 23 for 4 in the fifth over, but Misbah-ul-Haq’s 61 coupled with cameos from Thisara Perera and Darren Sammy ensured a thrilling last-ball victory for Rangpur Riders.

Amir, who started off with a maiden, was on a hat-trick in his third over, after dismissing Lendl Simmons and Soumya Sarkar in the final two deliveries of his second over. Although he didn’t get the hat-trick, he took the crucial wicket of Misbah, which seemed to have sealed the match.

“I think he won in that moment," Misbah said. "He bowled a really good yorker, I was set and I missed that. This is what people are here to watch. Amir bowled well with the new ball. He had good pace and variations. In the 19th over he would have won the game for his team. Good to see him bowling like [he did today].”

Vikings skipper Tamim Iqbal, echoed Misbah’s sentiments, said: “He bowled brilliantly. I was looking forward to seeing him bowl. I am sure he will get better and better each day. He was playing a game like this after a long time. I think he was a bit nervous but it will get better for him. He has been taking wickets back in Pakistan. He was playing T20s after a long time.”

Iqbal thought that his side were probably about 20 runs short and added that two dropped catches from Asif Ahmed didn’t help matters either. Misbah, on the other hand, admitted he was confident his side would win, given the fire power they had in the bank.

"We just wanted to play 20 overs, and that's what I was telling Al-Amin," Misbah said. "He was playing well at that time. We had Thisara and Sammy in the end, so we knew what capabilities they have when it comes to hitting the ball.

"Even if we needed 80 runs in five overs, we were confident. Here 15 runs an over is chaseable when you have set batsmen. Once you have that big over, you have to keep in mind which bowler has how many overs left. If we can plan that, we can win games.”