Shaheen Afridi could be missing from Pakistan for a sizable amount of time. After hurting himself during the men’s T20 World Cup final in Melbourne on Sunday, he is certain to miss the home series against England and New Zealand in December 2022 and January 2023.
It is believed that he has exacerbated the knee injury from which he had recently recovered. As Afridi’s replacement, Haris Rauf is reportedly in line to make his red-ball cricket debut.
In any case, it was anticipated that Afridi will skip the England Test series in order to rest. He sustained the injury while fielding in the first Test match against Sri Lanka in Galle in July, and it forced him to miss three and a half months of play as he received medical attention and recovered.
He was called back for the World Cup and, before being fully healthy, began Pakistan’s World Cup campaign against India. But as the competition went on, he seemed to find his groove, as evidenced by his stats of 4 for 22 against Bangladesh, 3 for 14 against South Africa, 3 and 24 against New Zealand in the semifinal, and 1 for 13 against England in the championship match in 2.1 overs.
Shaheen Afridi’s has a brace on his right knee at the moment:
In the title game at the MCG, Afridi came in from far off to take a sharp catch that sent Harry Brook back, but as he went down to retain the opportunity, his knee appeared to give way. He was forced off the field because he was clearly in discomfort. In the 13th over, that happened. After returning, he cautiously ran in to make one delivery but was unable to make more.
He has a brace on his right knee at the moment. The PCB, which confirmed the injury, stated that more details wouldn’t be available until the injury had been thoroughly assessed.
Along with the rest of the Pakistani team, Afridi will depart home via Dubai today.
