Injured Fakhar out of Champions Trophy, Pakistan call up Imam

KARACHI: Pakistan opener Fakhar Zaman was ruled out of the Champions Trophy on Thursday with an abdominal muscle injury and Imam-ul-Haq has been called up as his replacement.

Fakhar hurt himself while chasing a ball during Wednesday's defeat by New Zealand and spent significant time off the field, which meant he could not open the innings.

Batting at number four instead, Fakhar looked in discomfort and made 24 as Pakistan folded for 260 in reply to New Zealand's 320-5.

The tournament's event organising committee has approved left-handed opener Imam-ul-Haq as the replacement, the International Cricket Council said in a statement.

Pakistan must beat arch-rivals India in Sunday's blockbuster in Dubai to keep their title defence alive in the eight-team tournament.

The left-handed batter took to his social media handles to announce his departure from the rest of the tournament.

Imam was already part of the Pakistan Shaheens squad and recently impressed in a warm-up match against South Africa, scoring 98 runs.

Meanwhile, in the tournament opener, defending champions Pakistan suffered a 60-run defeat against New Zealand.

Chasing a daunting target of 321, the Men in Green were bowled out for 260, with Khushdil Shah top-scoring with 69 off 49 deliveries, while Babar Azam contributed 64 from 90 balls.

For New Zealand, Will Young and Tom Latham struck centuries, while Glenn Phillips’ quickfire 61 off 39 deliveries provided a crucial boost to their total.

Pakistan will now face arch-rivals India in their next fixture, a must-win encounter to keep their title defense hopes alive.

Pakistan's updated squad: Mohammad Rizwan (c), Babar Azam, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi.