ADELAIDE — Pakistan has been dealt a blow ahead of its World Cup quarterfinal against Australia with the news that left-arm fast bowler Mohammad Irfan will miss the remainder of the tournament due to a stress fracture of the pelvis. Irfan, who had missed Pakistan's last pool game against Ireland, had a scan Monday but it proved inconclusive. “A more detailed scan was ordered by team physiotherapist Brad Robinson Tuesday and it confirms an obvious stress fracture in the pelvis,” the PCB said in a statement. “The injury rules Irfan out of the World Cup,” Robinson said. Pakistan faces co-host Australia in their quarterfinal in Adelaide Friday and will wait until after the match before asking for a replacement. Irfan has largely been confined to playing limited-over cricket due to injury problems and has made just four Test appearances, compared to 45 ODIs and nine Twenty20 matches. Standing seven feet, one inch tall (2.16m), the 32-year-old extracted steep bounce from the pitches in Australia and New Zealand and took eight wickets in five matches. Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif said Irfan's injury was a major setback for the team. “He was the most dangerous new ball bowler in this tournament, they will have to regroup very strongly to overcome his absence,” Latif said. Irfan first felt the injury in the 129-run win over the United Arab Emirates two weeks ago when he bowled just three overs. Before Irfan was ruled out, former captain Wasim Akram said that the player needed to work on his fitness. “Irfan is different,” said Akram of the tallest man to play international cricket. “His body stretches more and needs careful handling. Captain Misbahul Haq described Irfan's absence as a “huge setback.” “Irfan was one bowler who was different to all the others in the competition,” Misbah said. “It is a huge setback for us but we have to live with it.” “It's difficult because we lost two bowlers to suspension before the World Cup,” said Misbah of ace spinner Saeed Ajmal and spinning all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez. “We also lost two good quality pacemen — Umar Gul and Junaid Khan — also to injury. Now just when we have started to perform well this injury hits us badly. “It's a worrying sign for a captain but we have to find a way to handle this.” Junaid was announced in the 15-man squad for the World Cup but injured his leg at a training camp and was replaced by Rahat Ali. If Pakistan wins the quarterfinal, it's understood that Junaid will be called up as a replacement for Irfan. — Agencies
