Noman Ali, the left-arm spinner, has been ruled out of Pakistan’s tour of Australia due to a diagnosis of acute appendicitis. This unfortunate development adds to the country’s already existing injury crisis. According to a press release from PCB, Noman complained of severe abdominal pain, leading to emergency examinations and scans that confirmed the diagnosis. Following the surgeon’s advice, he underwent a Laparoscopic Appendectomy and is currently in stable condition.
With only one healthy front-line spinner, Sajid Khan, in the lineup, this setback further weakens Pakistan’s bowling attack. Interestingly, Sajid himself was brought in as a replacement after the leading spinner, Abrar Ahmed, suffered an injury during the tour match. During the loss in Perth, Pakistan had to play without a front-line spinner on the field. It was later discovered that Noman was unavailable for selection due to a finger injury that prevented him from batting or fielding.
In addition to these challenges, Pakistan is also missing seam player Khurram Shahzad, who was ruled out two days ago due to a stress fracture in his ribs. Haris Rauf opted not to participate in the tour, and Naseem Shah is absent due to a shoulder injury sustained during the Asia Cup. As a result, in the first Test, Shaheen Afridi had to rely on two rookies, Aamer Jamal and Shahzad.
Pakistan does have reserve seamers such as Mohammad Wasim Jr., Mir Hamza, and Hasan Ali. The second Test of the three-match series will commence on December 26 in Melbourne. Pakistan has a challenging task ahead as they aim to break their losing streak of fifteen Test matches against Australia.
