Shoaib Akhtar, the Pakistan fast bowler, will train with Warwickshire as he recovers from a stress fracture of the ankle that ruled him out of the initial part of Pakistan’s tour of England.
“They [Warwickshire] will try to arrange a couple of club matches to help him come back from his injury,” Shahryar Khan, chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) told bigstarcricket.com. He is improving quickly but needs match practice and the weather in Pakistan right now is not conducive to him playing there - it is either too hot or raining. So he will train in England and will be checked up by our medical team."
Bob Woolmer, Pakistan’s coach, was hopeful that shoaib would be fit towards the end of the series. “We’ve not completely given up hope,” Woolmer told BBC Test Match Special. **"We’re looking to get him going and - touch wood - he might be available for the third and fourth Tests. **
“We’ve had some good news recently. His fracture’s virtually healed, so he should be able to start bowling again. We’re going to bring him over to England and try to find him some cricket. So if there are any clubs interested in having him bowl for them on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon then that would be useful for us.”
Shoaib had earlier expressed plans to be fit in time for the second Test at Old Trafford from July 27. But Shahryar made it clear that it was not a possibility. Shoaib last played for Pakistan in the Karachi Test against India in January this year. He has been out of action for the best part of the last five months after undergoing a twin knee surgery in Australia in February. He was named in a provisional Pakistan squad for England earlier this summer but was left out of the 16-man touring party after it was revealed that an earlier ankle fracture had not healed.
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
In another news, Mohd Asif is being sent back to Pakistan and Rao Iftakhar is being brought to England, RAO IFTIKHAR!!!! (and Taufeeq Umer, TAUFEEQ UMER, God help us).
I was not around to say this on this board, but I was vehemently opposed to our bowlers being sent to play county cricket after playing continuous cricket uptil the Sri Lankan tour. We had good bowlers, and they would have gotten accustomed to Englash conditions by playing side matches, THAT'S WHAT THEY ARE FOR. What's next, next time we go to India or Australia abroad, we should send our bowlers to play their domestic cricket?
Now after doing long spells in county cricket, Asif and Rana Naveed are injured and out for months. Gee, I am surprised!
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
These speculative reports serve no purpose except act as a smoke screen. We need to concentrate on the players we HAVE got. If we've already lost the series before the 4th Test then it hardly matters who plays, does it?
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
It’s called a dead rubber. Last thing we need is re-injure our only spearhead bowler in a dead rubber before the World Cup.
But lets not put the cart before the horse here. There is plenty of cricket to be played before then. Lets try to win those before we fret over who may or may not play 1 month from now.
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
But lets not put the cart before the horse here. There is plenty of cricket to be played before then. Lets try to win those before we fret over who may or may not play 1 month from now.
You are wrong because of two things:
(1) Even if you have lost the series (which I doubt will be the case, England might be in lead at worst, but I doubt we will have lost by then), the margin of victory or loss has an effect on your ranking. This is why India dropped in rankings despite winning against West Indies, because the margin of victory wasn't large enough.
(2) The last test match is not the end of the tour. We still have a ODI series to follow that we need to go into with positive momentum on our side.
Save your bowlers by not allowing them to play in county cricket, not by cutting on the real matches!
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
So a few brownie points on the rankings table is more valuable than the world cup? I am sure all of you have a fair idea about how injury prone our bowlers are. I say dead rubbers are for trying out new talent, and letting the old horses lick their wounds. County matches I agree, should be a big no no.
You can bet England won't be fielding their full strength team in a dead rubber ahead of the Ashes.
The point I am trying to make is this: we have to learn to prioritize our matches so that our key players are available when we need them most. Otherwise as you can see, you look like total idiots at the start of an all important tour.
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
I wouldn't pay attention to any of these news. First they said Asif will be fit to play the remaining tests, and the next day he is sent home. They give you false hope and then bam...
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
shoaib should be played in the second test now with asif out of the tour....i dont understand why so many injuries are happening and what are the coaches and physio doing to prevent it...one thing they could've done is not to have played asif and sami in the side matches and rested them...i think bob woolmer is making easy money here,he should be fired
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
Rao is nothing more then a club bowler. I play club cricket, or used to, and bowlers of his pace/ability are a dime a dozen. He must have serious contacts.
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
We desperately need a FAST bowler otherwise it's too PAINFUL to watch Sami and Gul opening the bowling and Razzaq coming as first change bowler :(
I am hopeful that Gul can improve with time especially under Waqar's guidance but i never had any hopes from Sami and probably never will, he will NEVER improve.
I hope Shahid Nazir plays the next game instead of Sami, he is no way a threatning bowler but better than Sami for sure.
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
I hope Shahid Nazir plays the next game instead of Sami, he is no way a threatning bowler but better than Sami for sure.
Assalam O Aalaikom mysterious_guy brother,
How are you? I agree that Shahid Nazir should have opportunity to play the next test match. Pace is not the key, accurate is. Pakistan today has lacked of bowlers. Look at today, we are crying of our bowlers with substituting. We are getting cheap bowlers. Can't we produce a best young fast bowler like India has produced Irfan Pathan? Time passes rapidly, after Shoaib Akhtar, who would be the aggressive then, that we would be exciting to watch?
Re: Shoaib might be available for the 3rd and 4th test
I do not think we need to rush Shoaib when he is injured, let him heal. Why we are so nervous about this pace attack is beyond my understanding. It was last year in India when Inzamam led a pace attack of Sami, Razzaq and Kaneria in India, where wickets were flat and environment hostile. We came with a draw against probably the best batting lineup in the world. I would not be surprised if Sami and Gul have a breakthrough performance in next Test matches. They would have it in this match if umpires and our fielders knew what to do.
The only problem I see is our opening partnership and fielding. If Butt and Farhat continuously provide us with steady flow of runs while we keep it tight in the field, we will win this Test series. We have a tremendous support from our middle order batsmen. The only thing England can talk about is Flintoff like Afridi and Razzaq are kal ke bache.