LAHORE, May 28: Pakistan captain Inzamamul Haq surprised everyone on Sunday when he disclosed that speedster Shoaib Akhtar was facing an ankle problem and would see a doctor on Monday.
Inzamam’s disclosure came two days after PCB chairman Shaharyar M. Khan’s statement that the board would investigate Shoaib’s absence from the ongoing training camp set up for tour of England.
Inzamam, who with eight other players joined the camp at the Qadhafi Stadium on Sunday after playing two ODIs against Asia XI in Saudi Arabia, expressed hope that the fast bowler would join the camp soon.
Commenting on the upcoming tour, he said England were tough rivals in home conditions and Pakistan would try to defeat them especially in one-dayers.
“Our Test record in England is good but it is not impressive in the shorter version of the game. We will try to improve it,” Inzamam said.
Asked if Mushtaq Ahmed would be considered for the tour as coach Bob Woolmer hinted, Inzamam said it was early to comment on the possibility.
The skipper said weather was hot in Lahore and schedule of the training camp was changed to save players from extreme heat.
Meanwhile, 16 probables reported at the training camp after arrival from Saudi Arabia.
Well they are saying that its not serious. I hope he gets fit soon..
Shoaib suffers new injury setback
Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has suffered a setback in his bid to prove his fitness before the tour to England.
Shoaib, who has been out of action since February following surgery on both knees, twisted an ankle during last week’s training camp in Lahore.
The injury is not thought to be serious but the 30-year-old has been told to rest for a few days.
The tour squad is due to be named on 9 June and Pakistan hope Shoaib will play at least one practice game before then.
Pakistan will play four Tests and five one-day internationals in England.
And Shoaib, who claimed 17 wickets to lead Pakistan to a 2-0 win over England in last winter’s home Test series, will be a key member of a potent seam attack which also includes Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Sami, Umar Gul and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan.
“I have only made one tour there in 2001 and on that trip I got injured, so I am very determined to stay fit on this tour,” Shoaib recently told bigstarcricket.com.
"I think the prospect of an England tour has given me the inspiration I needed to work as hard as possible to get back to full fitness.
"I’m not saying I wouldn’t have trained hard otherwise, but an England tour and of course a World Cup a few months later is a massive and exciting challenge. “They are what we play the game for, in front of big crowds, trying to win big matches,” he added.
Thank angels it’s not that yahoodi Waheed Khan. If it were up to him, he would have put the blame on Inzamam and Bob Woolmer for not waking up Shoaib at 5 o’ clock in the morning for match practice with another one of his sensationalizing headlines indicating that after spending all night with the Mullah Party in the hotel room, Inzamam went to sleep after Fajar prayers and left the ‘boyz’ all by themselves to stare at those shaadi-shuda aunties sitting lonely at the footpath alongside the stadium.
Their next stop-over on the way is San Francisco which will help increase their levels of collective ‘purity’.
Certainly an interesting thought considering his efforts in English conditions. Let's see what selectors do about it. I think only Woolmer hinted on his inclusion.
i wouldn't take him over danish kaneria personally- because danish is obviously more of an 'investment' where he needs to develop his game and become consistent... not to ride his bandwagon but it would be nice to see mushy bowling, wouldnt it?
I would rather pick 1 or 2 bowlers from the recent under 19 squad instead of going for budha Mushtaq. Even if Mushtaq take 10 wickets haul in country I would still not consider him for national team. Go for the young guns and groom the team for future instead of bringing back budhay.
Shoaib Akhtar has been diagnosed with a hairline fracture to his ankle and could miss the early part of the tour of England which starts at the end of June.
“Right now he has been advised one week’s rest as scans have shown a slight fracture in his ankle which is also swollen,” captain Inzamam-ul-Haq told Reuters. “However, the chance of him joining us late cannot be ruled out.”
Earlier in the week it was announced that Shoaib had a twisted ankle, but the problem is more serious than first diagnosed.
Although he is attending the national conditioning camp in Lahore ahead of the tour, he has not bowled for a while.
“The reports about him are a bit uncomfortable for us,” Inzamam admitted. “But he has done light training, so the fracture might not be a serious one. We will go by the doctor’s report and advice.” He said that Shoaib had to bowl in practice matches to have any chance of traveling with the rest of the team.
On the one hand, Inzi keeps babbling on about how the injury is serious. On the other, Woolmer keeps talking about how it's not that serious. And on the side, different PCB officials keep talking about how the injury is not serious at all. I won't believe any of these statements or the crap published in newspapers. I will just find out how fit he is by watching out for his inclusion in the Pakistani team on July 13th. Lock this thread :o .
Once again a simple case of a net injury has stirred Pakistan cricket into a frenzy not misplaced in a circus. No one knows what really happend, Shoaib has kept silent while everyone else and their chacha has expressed their opinion on the seriousness of the injury.
Cases like these make a strong case for a MEDIA MANAGER so that there is only one person who communicates to the media. This way we can avoid embarassing contradictions. But then again, everyone loves the cameras.
Shoaib likely to out for next 4-6 weeks according to the reports. Big blow for Pakistan ahead of a tough series. Asif also not doing very well at Leicester and Rana also suffering from injury (not too serious however), will this provide opprtunity to the devasting Rao Iftikhar to get back into the squad?
