Former Pakistan captain and well-known commentator Ramiz Raja has on Wednesday (December 16) blamed New Zealand Cricket (NZC) for Babar Azam’s injury days before the upcoming three-match T20I series starting December 18, Friday, in Auckland.
Ahead of the T20I series against the Black Caps, Pakistan suffered a huge blow as their captain Babar fractured his thumb during a practice session in Queenstown and the star batsman is expected to remain on the sidelines for at least 12 days.
He will miss all the three T20Is of the series to be played on 18, 20, and 22 December in Auckland, Hamilton, and Napier, respectively, though he is still taking part in the team’s training.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in an official release about Babar’s injury: “World’s second-ranked T20I batsman suffered the injury during a throw-down session, following which he was taken to a local hospital where X-rays confirmed his fracture.”
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Reacting to the same, Raja blamed the NZC for Babar’s injury, saying an uneven bounce on the pitch of the training center in Queenstown resulted in the Men in Green captain sustaining a thumb injury.
In a video uploaded on his YouTube channel, the cricketer-turned-commentator has further lashed out at the NZC for not providing proper training centers to Pakistan cricketers, claiming Queenstown's practice ground wasn't good enough for international cricket.
Raja also felt that Queenstown might have not met the required standards due to the lack of regular cricketing activities there while suggesting it should be mandatory to give attention to the practice centers while planning for an overseas tour.
Recently, former Pakistan captain and chief selector Inzamam-Ul-Haq said the 26-year-old Babar will most likely miss the first Test of the two-match Test series starting December 26.
Inzamam said on his YouTube channel: “Doctors have advised 12 days rest to Babar, so he won’t be able to practice till December 25 and the first Test starts on December 26.”
He added, “In addition to that, he has only practiced for two days prior to that as well, so he's been out of practice for a whole month. It will take him at least six to seven days to get back in form. Hence, he is out of the first Test match as well.”
(With Times Now Inputs)
