Pakistan Names Imam-ul-Haq as Fakhar Zaman’s Replacement for Champions Trophy

Fakhar Zaman is officially out of the ICC Champions Trophy. He hurt his back while fielding in the first match and had to leave the field for the rest of the first innings. He came back to bat but was struggling and could only face 41 balls.

“Fakhar Zaman has been deemed unfit for the rest of Pakistan’s Champions Trophy campaign. He sustained a knee injury during last night’s match. The scans following his injury aren’t promising, and he has been ruled out,” the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in a release.

The PCB has confirmed that Imam-ul-Haq will replace Fakhar Zaman in Pakistan’s squad for the ICC Champions Trophy. This means Pakistan has now lost both of their openers to injury. Saim Ayub was ruled out just before the tournament after failing to recover from an ankle injury he picked up in January in Cape Town.

Fakhar Zaman’s Emotional Message After Being Ruled Out

Some might argue that instead of making Babar Azam an opener, the PCB should have picked Imam earlier. He performed well in the Champions One-Day Cup 2024, averaging 53, and also scored 98 runs off 94 balls against South Africa for Pakistan Shaheens in a warm-up match.

Imam has a good ODI average of 48.27, although his strike rate of 82.55 is below average. Pakistan's worry now is their rate of scoring. Imam is not as aggressive as Fakhar, and Babar, although solid, is not a quick scorer either.

"Representing Pakistan on the biggest stage is an honour and dream of every cricketer in this country. 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. This is only just the beginning, the comeback will be stronger than the setback." Fakhar wrote in a post on X.

Pakistan Champions Trophy 2025 Squad

Mohammad Rizwan (c), Babar Azam, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Saud Shakeel, Tayyab Tahir, Faheem Ashraf, Khushdil Shah, Salman Ali Agha, Usman Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Hasnain, Naseem Shah, Shaheen Shah Afridi.

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