Naseem Shah suffers left knee injury during PSL match against Islamabad United

KARACHI: Fast bowler Naseem Shah suffered an injury scare during a Pakistan Super League season 11 match between Rawalpindiz and Islamabad United at the National Bank Stadium on Thursday, with the franchise later confirming that he had hurt his left knee.

The incident took place on the fourth ball of the 16th over of Islamabad United’s innings. Faheem Ashraf played a sweep off a length delivery from Saad Masood towards deep backward square leg, where Naseem dived to stop the ball and appeared to injure himself while doing so.

He was seen in visible discomfort and appeared to be favouring his left leg as medical staff attended to him on the field. He was then taken off the ground.

Rawalpindiz later said the 23-year-old had sustained a left knee injury and that the extent of the problem was being evaluated by the team’s medical staff.

The franchise said in a brief statement that "Naseem Shah is out of the field because of a knee injury he suffered while fielding. The medical team is assessing his condition. Further update will be shared in due course".

Fresh setback after recent return

The latest injury concern came in Naseem’s first appearance since recovering from a side-strain that he had picked up during Rawalpindiz’s third match of the eight-team tournament against Karachi Kings at Gaddafi Stadium on April 2.

That side injury had sidelined him for the foreseeable future, prompting the franchise to bring in all-rounder Mubasir Khan as a partial replacement.

The new setback adds to Rawalpindiz’s injury concerns during the tournament. The side had already been without Zaman Khan, who was ruled out of the ongoing PSL because of a shoulder injury sustained during the National T20 Cup.

Match context

The injury occurred during Rawalpindiz’s meeting with Islamabad United in Karachi. In the same match, Rawalpindiz’s decision to bowl first brought early rewards as Islamabad United were dismissed for 137 in their 20 overs.

According to match details, Islamabad made a slow start before losing wickets at regular intervals. Naseem had earlier made an impact with the ball by dismissing Mohammad Faiq for five off six deliveries during the powerplay, leaving Islamabad at 29-2 after 5.5 overs.

The match also featured a heated exchange later in the innings between Mohammad Amir and Faheem Ashraf after Faheem’s dismissal, before other players stepped in to separate the two.

Naseem’s condition is now being monitored, with Rawalpindiz yet to issue a further update on the severity of the knee injury.