Imad Wasim to miss opening T20 World Cup match

The Green Shirts suffered a major setback on Wednesday as all-rounder Imad Wasim has been ruled out of Pakistan's first T20 World Cup 2024 match against the United States.

Talking to the media persons on Wednesday, skipper Babar Azam confirmed Wasim's unavailability owing to side strain. 

"Imad Wasim is experiencing a side strain. It unfortunately means that he won't be available for our opening match," Babar said.

However, Babar expressed optimism that the all-rounder will soon be fit for the subsequent matches of the premier cricket tournament. 

"While Imad will miss the first game, we are hopeful that he will join the team in the remaining fixtures," he added.

Pakistan are scheduled to play their first World Cup match against the United States on 6th June. The US team started their campaign on a high note by defeating Canada in their first T20 World Cup encounter.

Squads

Pakistan: Babar Azam (c), Saim Ayub, Mohammad Rizwan, Azam Khan, Shadab Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Abrar Ahmed, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf.

United States: Monank Patel (c), Aaron Jones, Andries Gous, Corey Anderson, Ali Khan, Harmeet Singh, Jessy Singh, Milind Kumar, Nisarg Patel, Nitish Kumar, Noshtush Kenjige, Saurabh Nethralvakar, Shadley Van Schalkwyk, Steven Taylor and Shayan Jahangir.

Reserves: Gajanand Singh, Juanoy Drysdale and Yasir Mohammad