Pakistan suffered a major blow ahead of the second Test in Multan as their star pacer Haris Rauf was ruled out of the remainder of the three-Test series against England with a quad injury. Pakistan lost the first Test in Rawalpindi by 74 runs.
Notably, the star speedster had made his Test debut in the first Test in Rawalpindi, where he suffered a grade-two strain in his right quad while fielding during England's first innings.
After the PCB confirmed that "Haris will travel to Lahore where he will begin his rehabilitation at the National High-Performance Centre," former Pakistan pacer Aaqib Javed slammed the team management for poor treatment of Haris, saying he was not ready to play Tests yet.
As reported by Hindustan Times, Aaqib Javed said in an interview: “To make a comeback, Pakistan will have to play bowlers. Once they get a hold of a bowler, be in T20Is, ODIs or Tests - uska bedha gark karke saans lete hain (they don't rest unless it is ruined). Haris should not be playing Tests because he is not that trained.”
He further added, “Play bowlers who can play Test matches, who play First-Class cricket and pick wickets regularly. There is Mir Hamza - play such bowlers who can bowl for long periods and know where and how to bowl. And increase the number of bowlers.”
Javed further asked Pakistan to leave the stubbornness of not playing specialist players if they want to level the Test series against England in Multan, where the second Test will begin on December 9.
He signed off by saying, “You can't have part-timers operate from one end, who can stop the scoring, right? If you get wickets, only then will you get respite. Otherwise, they (England) will score at a brisk pace. Their mindset is to score at a run-a-ball. Keep a strike rate of 100.
If they get out in the process, for them it doesn't make a difference. And that is the difference. They bat at a strike rate of 100 or 135. How can there be a match?”
