PAK Vs ENG: 'Hardik Pandya Ruled Himself Out Of World Cup 2023 But Shadab Khan Couldn't..'- Imad Wasim

Pakistan All-rounder Imad Wasim believes that mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed can make the same kind of impact as Fakhar Zaman if he is given an opportunity in the team. Abrar Ahmed is a traveling reserve for Pakistan in this ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.

Since Abrar Ahmed is a traveling reserve, the only way through which he can participate in this World Cup is if a player is injured. There were some speculations in the media revolving around Abrar Ahmed’s participation in place of Shadab Khan, who suffered a concussion during Pakistan’s match against South Africa which caused him to miss the important clash against New Zealand the other day.

However, the PCB is optimistic about Shadab Khan’s availability in their last group-stage match against England. Pakistan’s Former left-arm pacer, Mohammad Amir, highlighted that the team management holds the key to such important decisions.

Imad Wasim Questions Pakistan’s Strategy

“There was a chance of including Abrar Ahmed [in the squad] but Shadab said that he is fit and available for the next match. [Hardik] Pandya was unfit and pulled out of the tournament himself, saying that India could include a fit player instead of him. So this was a chance to include Abrar but only team management can tell what they are thinking,” Amir said on a local TV channel.

Meanwhile, Imad Wasim backed the potential impact of players like Abrar, drawing a parallel to the impact Fakhar Zaman created in the match against New Zealand. “We had been saying for a while that Fakhar Zaman is an impact player. Similarly, when Abrar will play, he will make an impact as well,” Imad Wasim said.

However, Fakhar Zaman is an experienced player in ODI Cricket having played 81 ODIs and scoring above 3000 runs in the format. Abrar Ahmed has never played limited-overs cricket for Pakistan. He has featured in six test matches for the country and has created an impact. However, selecting a player for a marquee event like the World Cup that too based on his limited performances in test cricket seems too far-fetched.

Pakistan will face England in their last group-stage match of this World Cup on 11th November in Kolkata. Apart from being a must-win game for Pakistan, Pakistan must win this game with a rather huge margin or expect New Zealand to fumble against Sri Lanka in order to qualify for the Semi-Finals.