Young Pakistan fast bowler Naseem Shah has been ruled out of the third and final Test against England, scheduled to be played in Karachi, starting on December 17. The hosts currently trail the series 0-2 after losing the first two games.
Shah is currently struggling with a niggling shoulder problem and will be out of action when Pakistan look to salvage some pride in the third Test. Shah took five wickets in the first match of the series, which England won by 74 runs, but he was absent in the second game, which the touring side won by 26 runs to seal a 2-0 series victory.
Naseem Shah will now travel to Lahore for further assessment at the National High Performance Centre. However, a replacement has been not named at this stage by the team management.
Naseem, who made his Test debut in 2019, has featured in 14 Tests so far, taking 38 wickets at 36.94.
Pakistan out of World Test Championship 2023 final race
With consecutive defeats, Babar Azam’s Pakistan have squandered their chance of making it to the final of the ongoing edition of the ICC World Test Championship. They suffered their third Test series loss in the year 2022 on Monday.
The Men in Green slipped to sixth place in the latest standings, below England, who rose a place to reach 44.44%. Pakistan have 42.42%, while the loss comes as a major boost for Team India who are fourth in the standings, at 52.08%.
Australia are currently at the top of the standings and are almost certain to make it the World Test Championship final.
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