Left-handed opening batter Imam-ul-Haq has replaced injured opener Fakhar Zaman in the Pakistan squad ahead of the much-awaited ICC Champions Trophy 2025 clash against arch-rivals India.
Fakhar was ruled out of the Champions Trophy 2025 after he sustained an injury during Pakistan’s group-stage clash against New Zealand in Karachi yesterday.
The injury occurred in the very first over of New Zealand’s innings when Fakhar fell awkwardly while fielding, forcing him to leave the ground for medical assessment.
Though he attempted to return to the field after some time, he eventually walked off again, raising serious concerns about his fitness.
Imam-ul-Haq, who recently represented Pakistan Shaheens in the Champions Trophy warm-up match against South Africa, was later confirmed to replace Fakhar in the squad.
“The Event Technical Committee of the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025 has approved Imam-ul-Haq as a replacement for Fakhar Zaman in the Pakistan squad” the PCB stated in a media release.
“Twenty-nine-year-old Imam, who has played 72 ODIs, was named as a replacement after Fakhar was ruled out due to an oblique injury.
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“The replacement of a player requires the approval of the Event Technical Committee before the player can be officially added to the squad.”
Imam played his last of 72 ODIs against South Africa during the ICC ODI World Cup 2023. He has scored 3,138 runs at an impressive average of 48.27, featuring nine centuries and 20 half-centuries.
Meanwhile, his last international match was the Boxing Day Test against Australia in December 2023 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
The defending champions and hosts Pakistan began their ICC Champions Trophy 2025 campaign with a 60-run loss against New Zealand yesterday.
They will now travel to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for the much-awaited clash against arch-rivals India at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on February 23. Pakistan will then return home to face Bangladesh in Rawalpindi on February 27.
Pakistan squad for ICC Champions Trophy 2025
Mohammad Rizwan (c), Babar Azam, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha (vc), Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah and Shaheen Shah Afridi.
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