Pakistan may miss 'Boom Boom factor' in the initial stages of World Cup T20

Shahid Afridi

Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi may miss the initial few games, including the warm-up matches, of the 2014 ICC World Cup T20 after suffering a groin injury in the Asia Cup match against Bangladesh. The big hitter has been in the news recently for his match winning contributions with the bat against India and Bangladesh in the Asia Cup 2014.

“He will not leave with the team on Thursday night as the Board first wanted him to be cleared in a fitness test by the medical panel before he can join the team for the World T20 Cup,” said a Pakistani source to PTI, according to NDTV.

It also appears that the 34-year-old had taken painkiller injections to play the final match against Sri lanka in the Asia Cup.

Pakistan cricket consultant Zaheer Abbas confirmed that Afridi has been encountering fitness issues for quite some time now. He said: “Yes, he was not 100 per cent fit because of his injury, but he took painkiller injections and was keen to play and being a senior player who is in form, we took a chance with him.”