Dr Najeebullah Soomro on Pakistan star Shaheen Shah Afridi: “I have spoken with Shaheen and he is understandably upset with the news, but he is [a] brave young man who has vowed to come back strongly to serve his country and team”
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Dr Najeebullah Soomro, the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) chief medical officer, said left-arm seamer Shaheen Shah Afridi is a “brave young man”.
This comes after Afridi was ruled out of the Asia Cup with a right knee ligament injury and was replaced by fellow fast bowler Mohammad Hasnain.
He will also miss the seven T20 Internationals against England, which will be held in Pakistan.
“I have spoken with Shaheen and he is understandably upset with the news, but he is [a] brave young man who has vowed to come back strongly to serve his country and team. Although he has made progress during his rehabilitation in Rotterdam, it is now clear he will require more time and is likely to return to competitive cricket in October,” Soomro said in a press release from the PCB.
“PCB’s Sports & Exercise Medicine Department will be working closely with the player over the coming weeks to ensure his safe return to competitive cricket.”
Afridi is likely to return for the T20 tri-series in New Zealand, which will also involve Bangladesh and take place in October.
Following that series, Pakistan will feature in the T20 World Cup in Australia.
Pakistan squad for Asia Cup: Babar Azam (captain), Shadab Khan (vice-captain), Asif Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Haider Ali, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Hasnain, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir