Hafeez needed five stitches after spliting the webbing between the thumb and index finger on his left hand

Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo

Pakistan all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez has been ruled out of action for the next two weeks after injuring his hand while fielding during a practice match in Sharjah.

Hafeez split the webbing between the thumb and index finger on his left hand and required five stitches to seal the wound. As a result, he will miss the upcoming ODI series against Australia, which gets underway on October 7 in Sharjah.

“While playing the second practice game at Sharjah on Oct. 3, Hafeez received an injury in his left palm webbing which required five stitches,” a Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) release said. “The physio’s report suggested minimum two weeks rest, which ruled him out of the limited-overs part of the series against Australia. The team management had thus unanimously decided that there was no point in retaining him on the tour.”

Hafeez’s injury is a major blow to Pakistan as they will now be without their two main spinners since Saeed Ajmal was banned from bowling after he was found to be flexing his elbow nearly three times over the 15-degree limit.

It has been announced that uncapped opening batsman Sami Aslam, who captained Pakistan in the Under-19 World Cup earlier this year, will replace Hafeez in the ODI squad.