Credit: Twitter
Pakistan were knocked out of the Asia Cup 2023 after their defeat against Sri Lanka in the last-ball thriller on Thursday. The Men in Green played the do-or-die Super 4s clash at the Asia Cup against Sri Lanka without the services of their star pacers Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah, who both suffered injuries during their previous game against India. In a post-match conference, Pakistan skipper Babar Azam talked about Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf's recovery ahead of the ODI World Cup 2023.
In the absence of Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah, Pakistan played Mohammad Wasim Jnr and Zaman Khan in their must-win game against Sri Lanka and failed to take a single wicket as the hosts won the game on the last ball of the match.
Also read: Asia Cup 2023 - SL vs PAK Stats Review
In a post-game interview, Pakistan skipper Babar Azam was asked about his backup plans if Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf failed to recover before the World Cup in India. The 28-year-old said, "I'll tell you later. Not telling you our Plan B now. But yes, Haris Rauf is not bad. He's just got a little bit of a side strain, but he's recovering before the World Cup. Naseem Shah also... they have a couple of miss matches, I don't know (how long) the recovery (is), but in my opinion, Naseem Shah also (will be) in the World Cup later on. But let's see."
While Babar is not much concerned about Rauf's injury as he stated the 29-year-old pacer has just got a little bit of a side strain, Naseem Shah's injury is worrisome for the Pakistan team. The 20-year-old is currently in Dubai receiving treatment for a muscle injury below his right shoulder, however, the PCB has not yet specified the extent of Naseem's injury.
Pakistan are scheduled to begin their ICC ODI World Cup 2023 campaign against the Netherlands on October 6 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad.
