Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman hurt his lower back while fielding in the first game of the Champions Trophy against New Zealand. In the third delivery of the first over, Will Young drove Shaheen Shah Afridi through the covers and it beat the infield. Zaman managed to cover the distance to stop the ball from reaching the fence. He picked up the ball and threw it to Babar Azam and immediately complained of a back injury.
He was immediately attended by the physios and also signalled to be replaced. Soon, he made his way back to the dressing room. PCB in a statement clarified that the cricketer suffered a muscular pain and is currently being assessed.
"Fakhar Zaman is being assessed and examined for a muscular sprain and further updates will be provided in due course," the PCB said in a statement.
Opener Saim Ayub is already ruled of the tournament and Babar Azam has been made the makeshift opener in the team. In case the injury rules out Fakhar as well, it will be a massive blow to the hosts as the 34-year-old has been extremely effective for them at the top of the order. He scored 84 in the opening game of the tri-series against New Zealand.
The Mohammad Rizwan-led side cannot afford to lose both their openers to injury. Babar, who is made to open in Saim’s absence, hasn’t done well so far and that is also a concern. However, Haris Rauf, who pulled up a side strain in the opening game of the tri-series, recovered in time and is named in Pakistan’s squad for the match against New Zealand.
Teams:
New Zealand (Playing XI): Devon Conway, Will Young, Kane Williamson, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (wk), Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (c), Nathan Smith, Matt Henry, William ORourke
Pakistan (Playing XI): Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk/c), Salman Agha, Tayyab Tahir, Khushdil Shah, Shaheen Afridi, Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed