Pakistan captain Babar Azam is hopeful that Haris Rauf will return to full fitness following his shoulder injury and feature in next month’s T20 World Cup.
Fast bowler Rauf is included in the 18-man squad for upcoming tours to Ireland and England, while Pakistan will complete their 15-man squad for the World Cup in America and West Indies in May. It has been postponed until the 22nd.
The fitness of Rauf, Mohammad Rizwan, Irrfan Khan and Azam Khan will be assessed during the seven T20s against Ireland and England.
“We did not expect him (Rauf) to recover so quickly and resume bowling,” Babar said on Monday as the team prepares to depart for Ireland, where the first T20 will be played in Dublin on Friday. Speaking to reporters in Lahore, he said:
“There’s pressure on him to come back. There’s a lot of talk going around about his injury and how he’s going to deal with it. But if he gets the right rest mentally and physically , I think he’ll respond well because he can have a different impact.”
Rauf has been sidelined since dislocating his shoulder during the Pakistan Super League in late February. Since then, he has been undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore.
The seven-member selection committee, which also included Babar, named fast bowler Hasan Ali, who last played a T20 international in 2022, as Rauf’s backup.
Babar supported Hasan’s inclusion after pace bowlers Zaman Khan, Mohammad Wasim and PSL’s top wicket-taker Mohammad Ali were left out.
“There is no unfairness to anyone. We had a lot of discussions about the World Cup combination, but Hasan is there as a backup to Rauf because he has experience,” Babar said. “Zaman and Ali are new-ball bowlers, but we already have plenty of new-ball bowling options.”
Fast bowler Mohammad Amir, who played two T20 matches against New Zealand after his retirement, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Naseem Shah and Abbas Afridi will be Pakistan’s pace options.
Under Babar, Pakistan performed well in the last two T20 World Cups, reaching the semi-finals in the United Arab Emirates in 2021, but lost to England in the final in Australia in 2022.
Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Mohsin Naqvi has promised a prize of $100,000 to all players if their team wins the tournament.
“What happened in the past is in the past. Unfortunately we didn’t finish the way we wanted,” Babar said. “We are doubly confident and believe we can bring home the trophy.”
Pakistan will begin their tour against hosts USA on June 6 in Dallas before taking on arch-rivals India in New York three days later.
White-ball head coach Gary Kirsten is likely to join the England squad after completing his stint with Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League.
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