World Cup 2023: Fakhar Zaman likely to miss clash with Afghanistan

CHENNAI: As Pakistan take on Afghanistan in Chennai tomorrow (Monday), Pakistan batter Fakhar Zaman is highly likely to miss the World Cup clash, sources said on Sunday.

According to the sources, the 33-year-old will not be available for the match against Afghanistan, seemingly owing to his knee injury for which he is currently undergoing treatment.

The team management, however, said it is hopeful that the left-hand batter will be fit before the match against South Africa, the sources added.

Meanwhile, the sources also mentioned that Zaman's fitness saw considerable improvement and all other players, who were down with fever while in India for World Cup 2023, have also recovered.

Therefore, all the players, except Fakhar, will be available for selection against Afghanistan, added the sources.

Earlier this week, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said Zaman is being treated for a knee injury and will be available for selection next week.

On the other hand, it also updated about Agha Salman having a fever following the team's training last week, but said he was recovering from it.

The rest of the players in Pakistan's World Cup squad were doing well, the PCB had mentioned.

After a fever scare, almost all the players, apart from Muhammad Haris, were seen practising last Wednesday in Bengaluru ahead of the team’s World Cup match against Australia held on October 20.

Haris was advised to rest after he contracted a fever, while other players who had fallen sick earlier were seen on the ground practising with full force.

On Tuesday six players of the Pakistan team "missed" the optional training session at Bengaluru's M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

The six players who didn't participate in the training session included Abdullah Shafique, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Afridi, and Agha Salman along with travelling reserves Zaman Khan and Mohammad Haris.