ICC ODI WC 2023: Pakistan’s Naseem Shah is out of the World Cup match against India. There is another disappointing news for the Pakistani team after Pakistan is out of the race for the Asia Cup final.
Doubt Over Shah’s Fitness For The Opening Matches Of The World Cup:-
There are clouds of doubt over young fast bowler Naseem Shah’s fitness for the opening matches of the World Cup 2023.
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Pakistani captain Babar Azam himself has indicated that Naseem Shah may not be able to play in the India vs Pakistan World Cup clash to be held on October 14.
Naseem Shah has an injury on his right hand, although Pakistan Cricket Board i.e. PCB has not issued any release regarding his recovery.
Babar Azam appeared to be doubtful whether Naseem would be ready to play in the opening matches of the World Cup starting next month or not.
At the same time, Babar Azam seemed more confident about the fitness of another Pakistani bowler Hasir Rauf, who is suffering from injury, for the ODI World Cup.
Despite Haris Rauf’s injury, Pakistan did not drop him from the Asia Cup 2023 team and did not even add Shahnawaz Dahani to the team as his replacement.
Doubt over Naseem Shah playing in the World Cup, Haris Rauf can play:-
After Pakistan’s defeat in the Super-4 match at the hands of Sri Lanka in the Asia Cup and being out of the tournament, captain Babar Azam seemed confident about Haris Rauf playing in the World Cup, but in the case of Naseem Shah, he seemed a little doubtful.
When asked what is Pakistan’s backup plan in the World Cup if Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf do not play, Babar Azam gave a very vague answer.
Babar said I will tell you later. I won’t tell you about my backup plan right now. But Haris Rauf is in a better condition.
He only has a minor side injury but is recovering in time for the World Cup. Naseem Shah is also like this…he has not been able to play some matches.
I don’t know how long the rehab will take, but in my opinion, Naseem Shah will play in the latter part of the World Cup. Well, let’s see.”
The Pakistani team will start its campaign in the World Cup on 6 October against Netherlands in Hyderabad and will face Sri Lanka on 10 October at the same ground. After this, Babar Azam’s team will play against India on 14th October.
How Serious is Naseem Shah’s Injury?
PCB has not yet been informed about the status of Naseem’s injury. His muscle problem, which he suffered while bowling towards the end of the innings against India on Monday, is being examined by scans in Dubai. Due to this strain, he was ruled out of the Asia Cup.
On the same day, Haris Rauf was also unable to bowl due to some problem in his side and Pakistan rested him out of extra caution with the World Cup approaching.
Read more:- Asia Cup 2023: Bangladeshi Player Mushfiqur Rahim Will Not Play Against India
Naseem Shah has emerged as Pakistan’s leading bowler in all three formats in recent times. Naseem has been one of Pakistan’s most effective bowlers in this format, taking 32 wickets in 14 ODI matches.
