A major update has emerged regarding Pakistan cricket team’s opener batter, Fakhar Zaman, and his potential retirement from cricket.
It was recently reported that Fakhar Zaman was planning to retire from One Day International (ODI) cricket soon.
Reports also suggested that he had consulted with close associates about his decision.
However, sources have now dismissed these retirement rumors as unfounded.
They clarified that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will soon release a statement about Fakhar Zaman’s rehabilitation.
The sources assured that his injury is not serious, and he is expected to recover quickly.
It was previously speculated that the Champions Trophy would be Fakhar Zaman’s last ICC tournament and that he wanted to take a break from ODI cricket.
Further sources mentioned that Fakhar Zaman has still not fully recovered from hyperthyroidism.
He has taken a break from all formats of cricket for a few months, and doctors had advised him to rest.
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The left-handed batter limped off the field during the curtain raiser against New Zealand in Karachi.
The incident occurred in the first over of the fixture when Fakhar Zaman fell awkwardly during the fielding and got hurt.
Following his injury, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said that the batter was being examined for a muscular sprain.
Later it was revealed that, opening batter Imam-ul-Haq replaced Fakhar Zaman in the Pakistan squad for the Champions Trophy 2025 following his injury in their opening game against New Zealand.
Following his injury, the Event Technical Committee of the Champions Trophy 2025 approved Imam-ul-Haq as a replacement for Fakhar Zaman in the Pakistan squad.
“Imam, who has played 72 ODIs, was named as a replacement after Fakhar was ruled out due to an oblique injury,” the ICC said in a statement.
Fakhar Zaman took to Instagram to share the news with the Pakistan fans as he expressed his resolve to make a stronger comeback.
“I have been privileged enough to represent Pakistan multiple times with pride. Unfortunately I’m now out of ICC Champions Trophy 2025 but surely Allah is the best planner. Grateful for the opportunity. I will be backing our boys in green from home,” he wrote in his post on Instagram.
Pertinent to note here that Fakhar Zaman is the second opener who got injured in recent days as Saim Ayub was ruled out of the tournament due to an injury during the South Africa tour.
Meanwhile, Pakistan, the defending champions and hosts of the ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025, were eliminated from the eight-team tournament after New Zealand beat Bangladesh by five wickets at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.
