ICC T20 World Cup 2024: Pakistan head coach Gary Kirsten provides update on Imad Wasim ahead of India clash

Imad Wasim didn’t play against USA due to side strain injury.

Pakistan white-ball head coach Gary Kirsten has provided a huge update on their injured all-rounder Imad Wasim ahead of the high-voltage clash against arch-rivals India in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2024 in New York on June 9.

In the ongoing ICC event, Babar Azam-led Pakistan suffered a close defeat against co-hosts the United States of America on June 6 in Dallas. The thrilling clash between the two sides went into the Super Over, where the Men in Green lost the game by five runs. However, their star all-rounder, Imad, didn’t feature in the match due to a side strain injury.

Earlier this year, the 35-year-old took back his retirement in order to play for the T20 World Cup 2024. The star all-rounder was then picked by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) for the marquee tournament. 

Since reversing his retirement decision, Wasim has played three T20I series till now. He first played during the four-match series against New Zealand. Then Imad featured in the three-match T20I series against Ireland. The veteran all-rounder then played just one match against England in the four-match T20I series.

Imad Wasim will play against India: Pakistan head coach Gary Kirsten

Earlier, a report by BBN stated that the 35-year-old Imad hasn’t recovered from his side strain injury and is not 100% fit. The report further added that Wasim has been given painkillers and injections to make him match-fit for the upcoming India clash on June 9. The report claimed that there is just 20% chance that Imad will be staying with the Men in Green for the rest of the ICC event.

Ahead of the much-awaited clash against India, Men in Green head coach Gary Kirsten has confirmed that the 35-year-old Imad is match fit and he will play against India.

“Imad Wasim will be available for the match against India,” Kirsten confirmed in the pre-match press conference on June 8.

The Pakistan white-ball head coach further added that they will forget the loss against the United States and try to make a comeback in their next group stage match against arch-rivals India.

“We will make a comeback in tomorrow’s match hopefully. I don’t like to dwell on the past, we will forget the previous loss [against USA] and focus on the match [against India] and play excellent cricket,” Kirsten added.

Squads of India and Pakistan in T20 World Cup 2024:

India: Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya (vc), Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzi Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj.

Reserves: Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Avesh Khan, Khaleel Ahmed

Pakistan: Babar Azam (captain), Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Iftikhar Ahmed, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Rizwan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Usman Khan

For more updates, follow Khel Now Cricket for IPL 2024 Live Score & IPL Points Table,  on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Whatsapp & Telegram.