Cricket News
T20 World Cup 2024 – Imad Wasim in serious doubt for India match with suspected rib injury
Pakistan will be forced to make a late call on Imad Wasim’s inclusion ahead of Sunday’s group game against India. Ten days after the PCB said Imad missed the final match of the T20I series against England for “safety reasons” after a suspected rib injury, the allrounder remains a major doubt for the game.
In the days since, it has become clear that Imad’s injuries are more serious than publicly disclosed. He missed Pakistan’s first match of the T20 World Cup against the USA, which Pakistan lost in the Super Over, with the same complaint. And while the PCB has released pictures of him bowling in the nets, ESPNcricinfo understands that Pakistan will take a final decision on the day of the match after assessing his fitness.
Imad’s unavailability in the game is a problem Pakistan can do without. In his absence, they struggled to balance the side. They decided to go to the match against USA with out-of-form Azam Khan and Shadab Khan as the only specialist bowler, despite concerns about his bowling ability.
Azam was dismissed for a golden duck, while Shadab came under criticism from his captain Babar Azam, when he said that following the defeat, Pakistan’s “spinners” (Iftikhar Ahmed, who caught part-time, was the other way around and bowled only one over. ) struggled to get wickets.
Although this particular problem – the PCB officially calls it “discomfort in his right ribs” – has not been a problem for Imad in the past, he has struggled with various injuries. He has nursed a knee for most of his career which has hampered his ability to play longer formats.
Ahead of the 2019 World Cup, he was given more time to pass a fitness test due to his chronic knee injury, and began his international retirement in 2023.
On his return at the beginning of this year, he made it clear that he is not signing a medium contract, and he was only back for this World Cup. However, with Pakistan already looking like they are flirting with an early exit, it remains unclear how much Imad will actually be able to contribute to his international swansong.
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