Shadab Khan the third Pakistani player to pass the first Test against New Zealand through injury; all-rounder (thigh) joins Babar Azam and Imam-ul-Haq (thumb) in losing out; bowling coach Waqar Younis to leave camp after Boxing Day Test to see family
Last updated: 23/12/20 9:49 am
Pakistan’s Shadab Khan misses first Test against New Zealand after maintaining a thigh problem in the last T20I
Pakistan has suffered another injury blow ahead of the first Test against New Zealand with all-round third-placed Shadab Khan out.
The foot (thigh) spinner joins captain Babar Azam and the opening bat Imam-ul-Haq (thumb) in losing the game against the black captains at Mount Maunganui from Day Boxing.
Shadab, 22, was injured in the Twenty20 last Tuesday against New Zealand in Napier, who beat Pakistan with four wickets to avoid a 3-0 series sweep.
Babar Azam will miss the first Test so Mohammad Rizwan will captain Pakistan at Mount Maunganui
“Shadab will now go through MRI scans in Tauranga on Thursday, after which another update will be given on the exact nature of the injury and the time required to return to competitive cricket,” the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in the recitation.
Left-arm spinner Zafar Gohar was relentlessly added to the squad after joining the Pakistan A team in Hamilton.
Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Abid Ali, Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fawad Alam, Haris Sohail, Imran Butt, Mohammad Abbas, Naseem Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shaheen Afridi, Shan Masood, Sohail Khan, Yasir Shah, Zafar Gohar
Hopeful Misbah will play Babar in the second test
The second Test starts in Christchurch on January 3 and Pakistan head coach Misbah-ul-Haq is confident Babar will be back for that fixture after his recent return to use.
“Hopefully Babar will be fit for the second Test,” Misbah said of the captain, who also missed the Twenty20 series with his broken thumb.
Pakistan head coach Misbah-ul-Haq hopes Babar will be back for Christchurch Test from January 3
“He started grabbing the bat and working with a tennis ball. You can’t predict much with injuries like that but I hope he gets better in five or six days.
“He has about eight days or so to prepare, which would be a huge boost for us.”
Waqar bowling coach gave permission
Pakistan has also announced that bowling coach Waqar Younis has allowed his family to see him and will leave the camp after the Opening Test against New Zealand.
Waqar will meet family for the first time in more than six months in Lahore and then return to the Pakistan establishment before January 17 to prepare for the home series against South Africa.
Pakistan bowling coach Waqar Younis has been allowed to see his family and will leave after the first Test
The 49-year-old tried to meet a Sydney-based family in September and went into compulsory 14-day quarantine in Australia but his father died until he returned home to Pakistan for burial.
“Considering that Waqar has not seen his family since June and acknowledges that our home series against South Africa, which follows the series against New Zealand, is not ending until February 14, we took a pragmatic view of his application, “said the Pakistan manager. Mansoor Rana said.
“We have allowed him to return home early so that he can spend more time with his wife and children. If he had returned to Lahore by the sidelines after the second Test, he would only have a week to spend with them.
“For all of us, families always come first and in the past we have made similar exemptions so that our team members can achieve the right work-life balance.”