Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja has confirmed that star left arm pacer Shaheen Afridi is fit and will play the opening T20 World Cup 2022 game against Arch Rivals India.
They will face Team India on 23rd October at Melbourne Cricket Ground, Australia.
Shaheen Shah Afridi suffered a right knee ligament injury during the Test match against Sri Lanka in July. He missed the 2022 Asia Cup and the seven-match T20I series against England at home.
“I spoke to Shaheen Afridi two days ago. He is making great progress and the doctors sent me his videos. He is at 90 % now and they think that he will be battle-ready (for the world cup). Knee injuries are technical and sensitive, so our opinion was until that he isn’t 110 %, so we won’t risk him. But when I spoke to him, he said he is already at 110%. He told me that he will go (to Australia) to play the practice matches and be ready for India,” Ramiz Raja said while talking to Dawn.
Fakhar Zaman in also recovering: Ramiz Raja
Ramiz also provided positive update on star batter Fakhar Zaman’s recovery from the injury.
“Fakhar Zaman in also recovering and I believe if he regains his fitness, he will provide a lot of value. This call is upto the team and depends on how they view the combination. Besides that, Usman Qadir has a hairline fracture on his finger, so we have to look at our options as well,” he added.
