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Pakistan batter Imam-ul-Haq comes across as a late casualty for the side, and the player will not partake in the crucial Asia Cup 2023 clash against Pakistan.
The left-handed batter was part of the playing XI announced on Wednesday but sustained a late back spasm during warm-up on match day.
Imam-ul-Haq settled into life in Sri Lanka, scoring two fifties in his first five innings in the country. However, he along with Fakhar Zaman were beginning to struggle a bit at the top of the order as the Asia Cup progressed.
Pakistan will be hoping that Imam's injury is not a serious one, considering the upcoming 2023 ODI World Cup starting next month. He is an integral part of the playing XI, and the Men in Green are not expected to play any more matches until the scheduled warm-up matches in India prior to the showpiece tournament.
Pakistan had to make additional changes to their announced playing XI. Batter Saud Shakeel also failed to recover from a fever in time for the contest and was replaced by Abdullah Shafique. As a result, the team are going in with a completely different playing XI from the one that was announced earlier. Mohammad Haris is slated to bat in the middle-order during the first innings.
Skipper Babar Azam confirmed that Fakhar Zaman has once again been included in the playing XI due to the late injury. He said during the toss after opting to bat first:
"We will bat first. We are trying to put runs on the board and put pressure on them. Second innings, the pitch behaves differently. Imam has a back spasm. Fakhar comes back. Saud Shakeel has fever. Abdullah Shafique is playing."
The new look opening pair of Abdullah Shafique and Fakhar Zaman have started out cautiously against the new ball. The contest, owing to the delayed start, has been reduced to 45-overs per side.
Pakistan have to win this match to qualify into the finals, while Sri Lanka will scrape through either by a win or a wash out.
"You have to step in and this is the day we are looking forward to" - Imam-ul-Haq
The left-handed opening batter dropped down one place to fifth in the latest ICC ODI rankings. He scored a promising fifty in the win over Nepal, but fell quickly during the mammoth run chase against India.
Imam-ul-Haq spoke to the broadcasters prior to his injury during the warmups, where he said:
"We haven't lost any match since three months. Unfortunately that was the game (vs India), we need to get rid of that from our blood. That's part of the game. We have some quality players and we talked about it. You have to step in and this is the day we are looking forward to."
"We played LPL here Test matches as well. We knew that the conditions will be like this. It's not a batting paradise. It's a tough challenge. As a batsman, you have to adapt. you have to craft your innings and look for the bad balls," he added.
How big of a miss would Imam-ul-Haq be for Pakistan in such a crucial contest? Let us know what you think.
