Injury Forces Abdullah Fazal To Withdraw From West Indies Test Series

Pakistan batter Abdullah Fazal is likely to miss the Test series against West Indies and England after suffering a lower-back injury.

The PCB said Fazal picked up the injury during a training session on Thursday at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba, the venue for the first Test against West Indies. The board has not yet announced who will replace him.

Fazal has been one of Pakistan’s most promising young players since making his Test debut against Bangladesh in May. He made an impressive start to his career, scoring half-centuries in both innings and finishing as Pakistan’s top scorer in the match.

He was also in good form during Pakistan’s tour game against a West Indies Select XI earlier this week. Fazal remained unbeaten in both innings, scoring 50 and 48, and was expected to feature in the first Test. With Fazal unavailable, middle-order batter Awais Zafar could get the chance to make his Test debut. Zafar was added to the squad as a replacement for Saud Shakeel, who missed out because of fitness concerns.

Meanwhile, Imam-ul-Haq, who was absent from Pakistan’s last Test against Bangladesh, is now expected to return as an opener.

Speaking about the unfortunate injury of Fazal, Pakistan test captain Babar Azam expressed his good wishes for the opener, saying he is looking forward to his speedy recovery.

"I wish Abdullah good luck and hope he recovers well. The kind of talent he is I found very inspiring. He was very confident after his first series and his morale was very high." said Babar Azam while talking to the reporters.

The injury is a big setback for Fazal at the early stage of his career. He had a chance to strengthen his place in the national team during two important away tours, as Pakistan is set to travel to England after completing the West Indies series.

Updated Pakistan Test Squad for West Indies Series

Babar Azam (c), Aamir Jamal, Ali Usman, Azan Awais, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Awais Zafar, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori (wk), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Shan Masood and Ubaid Shah.