Pakistan Cricket Board Provides Medical Update On Shadab Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Khurram Shahzad

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Thursday (18th January) provided a medical update on the three of key injured players. Pakistan Cricket Team over the last few months has been jolted with some major blows as three of their match winners in Shadab Khan, Abrar Ahmed, and Khurram Shahzad suffered injuries. 

Shadab Khan injured himself during the National T20 match in Pakistan. The leg-spinner hurt his foot while fielding and couldn’t walk properly. He was carried off the field and since then has missed all the games for Pakistan including the ongoing five-match T20I series against New Zealand. 

The all-rounder since then has been putting in hard yards at the National Cricket Academy in his recovery process. Shadab Khan was part of the five-week rehab to get his ankle correct and get fit ahead of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2024. 

Mystery spinner Abrar Ahmed injured himself during the Australia tour. Even before the Test series, he got injured. The spinner during the practice game against Prime Minister XI in Canberra experienced pain in his right leg. 

The injury didn’t look serious at first and it was expected that Abrar Ahmed would recover in time for the second Test at MCG. However, things were worse than expected as he was ruled out of the series and returned to Pakistan for the recovery.

On the other hand, Khurram Shahzad got injured midway during the Australia Test series. He made his debut in the first Test in Perth and impressed many with his bowling, removing the likes of big guns in Steve Smith and David Warner. 

However, after the first Test, Khurram Shahzad sustained a stress fracture and was ruled out of the Test series against Australia. His absence was evident as other bowlers couldn’t make an impact and Pakistan suffered a disappointing 3-0 whitewash in the series. 

Pakistan Cricket Board Provides Update On Shadab Khan, Abrar Ahmed And Khurram Shahzad 

Following their injuries, Shadab Khan, Abrar Ahmed, and Khurram Shahzad headed to the National Cricket Academy in Lahore. They are undergoing their rehab under the medical panel headed by Dr Sohail Saleem. The trio is soon expected to make a comeback. 

Dr Sohail Saleem, who is the Director of Medical and Sports Sciences, while talking about Shadab Khan revealed that the all-rounder has completed his rehab and has been declared fit. He explained: 

“It is pleasing to see Shadab Khan has been declared fit after undergoing a robust rehab plan under the medical team here at the National Cricket Academy.” 

On Abrar Ahmed and Khurram Shahzad, Dr Sohail Saleem said that the duo underwent testing for their rehab and have been given a plan based on that. He added that both the Pakistan players will be working under the supervision of the medical team. He added: 

“Abrar and Khurram have just joined us for rehabilitation. Upon their arrival, these two players underwent mandatory testing to understand the nature of their injuries. They have now been provided with a plan, which they will work on under the supervision of the medical team.” 

There’s no clarity on when the duo will make a comeback for the team. Management would be hoping that they get fit soon and play a crucial role in matches coming up.