LAHORE: Pakistan national team captain Babar Azam will miss the second Test against New Zealand, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has confirmed.
Mohammad Rizwan will lead the side in his absence for the match commences at the Hagley Oval from Sunday. According to the PCB, Babar had a full-fledged training session yesterday but felt a slight pain in his thumb, following which, the team management has opted against taking any risk.
Babar had to sit out the three-T20I series and missed the first Test at Mount Maunganui after he fractured his right thumb during a net session in the lead-up to the Test series. New Zealand won the first Test by 101 runs.
“We have seen improvement in Babar Azam’s injury but he is yet to fully recover. He is our captain and the most important batsman in the lineup, so we do not want to take any risk,” said Dr Sohail Saleem, who was part of the medical panel overseeing the cricketer.
“The medical team is constantly reviewing his injury and we are hopeful he will be available for the home series against South Africa,” he added.
Pakistan squad for the second Test:
Mohammad Rizwan (captain, wicketkeeper), Abid Ali, Azhar Ali, Faheem Ashraf, Fawad Alam, Haris Sohail, Imran Butt, Mohammad Abbas, Naseem Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shan Masood, Sohail Khan, Yasir Shah and Zafar Gohar
