Left-handed opener Abdullah Fazal will miss Pakistan’s two-match Test series against the West Indies after picking up a back injury ahead of the series opener scheduled to begin on Saturday.
According to the details, the 23-year-old picked up a lower-back injury during the Green Shirts’ training session here at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba, which will host the first Test until July 29.
Fazal consequently underwent an MRI scan, following which the left-handed opener was advised to start his rehabilitation and was deemed unfit for the upcoming series against West Indies and the subsequent Test tour of England, comprising three matches, set to be played from August 19 to September 3.
His replacement for both the aforementioned assignments will be announced in due course, said the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).
His unavailability serves as a major blow to the touring side as the left-handed opener showed glimpses of brilliance in their four-day warm-up match against West Indies Select XI at the Queen’s Park Cricket Club in Port of Spain, registering unbeaten knocks of 50 and 48, respectively, in the two innings.
Notably, Fazal has thus far represented Pakistan in two Tests, with both appearances coming during their away series against Bangladesh in May, and has accumulated 141 runs at a decent average of 35.25 with the help of two half-centuries.
Updated Pakistan squad for West Indies Tests
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.
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