Even before the start of the one-off Test against New Zealand, Afghanistan were dealt a heavy blow as their prolific top-order batter Ibrahim Zadran was ruled out of the game due to an ankle injury, late Sunday (September 8), confirmed the Afghanistan Cricket Board.
Zadran’s injury was highly concerning given the fact that he was also ruled out of the three-match ODI series against South Africa which will be played in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates from September 18 onwards.
“He has been ruled out of the upcoming one-off Test against New Zealand and the three-match ODI series against South Africa due to an ankle sprain in his left leg,” the ACB said in a statement.
“The ACB wishes him a speedy recovery and looks forward to his return to the field soon,” the statement added.
Zadran, who has played seven out of the total nine Tests played by Afghanistan so far, is the second-highest run-scorer for the side in their red-ball cricket history with 541 runs in 14 innings. He has one hundred and four fifties in this format. In ODIs, Zadran has five centuries and seven fifties to his credit.
The Afghanistan-New Zealand game at the Greater Noida Sports Complex begins on Monday (September 9).
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