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Pak vs NZ: In major blow to Green Shirts, Abbas Afridi ruled out of third T20I

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Abbas Afridi has been ruled out of the 3rd T20I against New Zealand due to discomfort from a low-grade abdominal wall muscle strain, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in a statement on Tuesday.

The third T20I match is set to take place tomorrow (Wednesday) in Dunedin.

The PCB said the fast bowler’s scan showed no sign of significant injury, and “he will be managed symptomatically”.

The cricket governing body said Abbas’ availability for the last two games will be made at a later stage.

His exclusion would be a big loss to the team as Afridi was the leading wicket taker for team along with Haris Rauf even though they have been in lost causes.  

New Zealand beat Pakistan by 21 runs in the second Twenty20 international to take a 2-0 series lead.

The tourists threw away a strong position in their run chase after Babar Azam and Fakhar Zaman scored half-centuries as they were dismissed for 173 in the final over, in response to New Zealand’s 194-8.

Victory came at a cost for the Black Caps, whose captain Kane Williamson retired hurt with a hamstring injury while batting, placing him in doubt for the remainder of the five-match series.

The match bore similarities to New Zealand’s 46-run win in the opening match in Auckland on Friday, with another aggressive batting approach led from the top by Finn Allen.

His 70 off 41 balls continued a run of form which the hard-hitting opener attributed to a change of approach.

“I’ve been working hard on assessing conditions and choosing when to pull the trigger,” Allen said.

“I’m always looking to score boundaries and be positive but it’s situational. It’s when to take a higher-risk option or a lower risk.”

The target looked within sight for Pakistan before Fakhar was bowled by Milne for a power-packed 50 off 25 balls in the 10th over, leaving Pakistan 97-3.

They struggled from that point, with only Babar looking a threat until he was caught off Ben Sears for 66.

Milne finished with 4-33, having earlier removed the dangerous Mohammad Rizwan as Pakistan lost both openers with just 10 runs on the board.

New Zealand were again asked to bat first and Allen immediately took on the visitors´ attack, blasting five sixes and seven fours.

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Sajid Khan smashes Saqlain Mushtaq’s 24-year-old Test record in Pakistan vs England.

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In the opening Test match between Pakistan and England at the Multan Cricket Stadium, off-spinner Sajid Khan created history by taking seven wickets, shattering the 24-year-old record set by the late, great Saqlain Mushtaq.

Day three of the second Test saw England eliminated for 291 after seven wickets from Sajid Khan, trailing Pakistan’s first innings by 366 runs.

During the morning session, the 31-year-old off-spinner claimed three of the four wickets that fell, making it his second five-wicket haul of the day. England had resumed at 239-6 in Multan.

Remaining wicket-taker for Pakistan, with statistics of 3-101, was left-arm spinner Noman Ali.

Sajid Khan ended up being the first Pakistani off-spinner to take five or more wickets at home since Saqlain Mushtaq did it in 2000 at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, taking seven wickets for 111 runs in 26.2 overs.

The scoreboard read 239-6 when England had already resumed their batting. At the crease were Jamie Smith (12) and Brydon Carse (2).

But in the morning, Sajid Khan replaced Carse after they could only add nine more runs. After reaching 21, Smith was caught by Noman, and the off-spinner quickly got rid of Matthew Potts (6).

Prior to Sajid finishing the batting, Jack Leach amassed a vital 25-run unbeaten innings. He and Shoaib Bashir (9) added 29 runs for the final wicket.

Noman grabbed three wickets at a cost of 101 runs, while Sajid took figures of 7-111.

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Second Test between Pakistan and England: Pakistan fights to 366/10 on day two

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Pakistan chose to bat in the second Test match between England and Pakistan in Multan, and by the second session on Day 2, they had amassed 358/9.

(123.3 ov) 366/10

Despite having a hip injury, Aamer Jamal made a significant contribution to the score alongside Noman Ali before being dismissed for 37 runs by Brydon Carse.

As Pakistan tries to extend their first innings score, Noman Ali, who is 29, is still undefeated. With three wickets for forty-three runs, Carse has been very effective. Spinner Shoaib Bashir has also taken a wicket.

The early England wicket burst and the solid 49-run stand between Jamal and Noman have kept the match evenly matched.

England’s goal in opening their batting innings will aim to remove the final Pakistani wicket as soon as possible.

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The PCB has issued a show-cause notice to Fakhar Zaman about a post about Babar Azam.

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The newly constituted selection committee on Sunday excluded Babar, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi, and Sarfaraz Ahmed off the roster for the ongoing second and forthcoming third Test against England.

Subsequent to the announcement, Fakhar Zaman utilized his official X (previously Twitter) account to convey his disappointment. He referenced the manner in which India handled Virat Kohli throughout his challenging period from 2020 to 2023.

“It is troubling to receive proposals regarding the dismissal of Babar Azam.” Fakhar stated that India did not bench Virat Kohli during his challenging period from 2020 to 2023, when he recorded averages of 19.33, 28.21, and 26.50, respectively.

The left-handed batsman commended Babar, deeming him the greatest Pakistani batsman in history, while emphasizing the necessity of strategic decisions instead of resorting to panic.

“Sidelining our premier batsman, arguably the finest Pakistan has ever produced, may convey a profoundly negative message to the team.” There remains an opportunity to avert unnecessary alarm; our emphasis should be on protecting our pivotal actors rather than compromising them,” he stated.

Subsequently, the next day, the PCB issued a show-cause notice to Fakhar for violating the Code of Conduct. The cricket board has requested the dynamic batsman to reply to the notification by October 21.

The second Test between Pakistan and England is now in progress in Multan, while the third and final match of the series is scheduled to take place in Rawalpindi starting October 15.

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