Pakistan’s right-arm pacer Naseem Shah could miss the entirety of this year’s ICC Men’s World Cup in India due to a shoulder injury, ESPN Cricinfo reported Saturday.
According to the report, Naseem sustained a much worse injury to his right shoulder than it was suspected by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
The severity of the injury is such that the young lanky pacer may get ruled out of the World Cup as well as the Australia tour and the ninth edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
“Pakistan fast bowler Naseem Shah is likely to miss the entire World Cup after scans revealed an injury to his right shoulder that is worse than was initially suspected,” the report stated.
“The PCB is understood to be seeking a second opinion, but scans from tests in Dubai appear to show the injury could rule him out for the rest of year.
“Should secondary results back up the initial ones, Naseem, 20, is looking at a layoff spanning several months which means his participation in the Test series in Australia at the turn of the year is in doubt, as well as the next Pakistan Super League also in grave doubt.”
Notably, Naseem Shah walked off the field, leaving the 46th over of India’s innings midway on the reserve day organized for the much-anticipated Pakistan-India clash.
Briefly, after Pakistan’s 228-run defeat against arch-rivals India, the PCB called up Zaman Khan and Shahnawaz Dahani as backup pacers for the rest of the tournament, as a precautionary measure to provide a cover for injured Naseem and Haris Rauf.
Later, the PCB confirmed that Naseem Shah has been ruled out of the Asia Cup 2023 and Zaman was added to the Pakistan squad.
It is worth mentioning here that the PCB will make a final decision regarding Naseem Shah’s availability for the ICC Men’s World Cup 2023 once they receive results from Shah’s secondary scans in the coming days.