Zaman Khan: A look into Naseem Shah's replacement for Asia Cup 2023

Pakistan have roped in pacer Zaman Khan as a replacement for injury-hit fast-bowler Naseem Shah for the rest of the Asia Cup 2023. 

Pakistan will be playing the must-win Super Four stage fixture against Sri Lanka on Thursday. It is a virtual semi-final whose winner will play India in the final on September 17 (Sunday). 

After reaching the Super Four stage, the Pakistan camp has been struggling with injuries. Pacer Haris Rauf could not play the whole of the lopsided fixture against the arch-rivals. 

Now, fast bowler Naseem Shah has been ruled out from the tournament due to a shoulder injury. Zaman Khan will be replacing him.  

JUST IN: Naseem Shah has been ruled out of the remainder of #AsiaCup2023 with a shoulder injury – Pakistan have called up Zaman Khan as his replacement 🇵🇰 pic.twitter.com/GShL8iV8v3

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) September 13, 2023

Moreover, Shahnawaz Dahani has also been called up for the tournament. 

“Pakistan have called up Shahnawaz Dahani and Zaman Khan as backups,” the PCB stated. ” The two have been called up after Haris Rauf and Naseem Shah picked up niggles in the match against India.

“This is only a precautionary measure keeping in mind the fitness and well-being of the players ahead of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup next month.”

It remains to be seen whether Zaman Khan can live upto expectations, given that he is a T20 specialist. As far as his international career is concerned, he has represented the Green Shirts in four 20-over matches with four wickets to his name.

He will be looking to make full use of his experience in the Lanka Premier League in tomorrow’s game. The pacer has represented Jaffna Kings in the tournament. He bagged four wickets from five games in the 2022 edition. 

Moreover, he is a Pakistan Super League star. The right-arm pacer represented two-time champions Lahore Qalandars. He has taken 33 wickets from 26 games for the franchise.   

Moreover, he represented Manchester Originals in five matches of this year’s The Hundred and took two wickets.

As far as his Global T20 Canada 2023 stint was concerned, the right-arm pacer bagged seven wickets from six games.

Pakistan will have to rethink its bowling strategy following the inclusion of Zaman Khan and Shahnawaz Dahani in the Asia Cup 2023 squad. Shaheen Afridi used to start with Naseem Shah, but now he has three new options with Haris Rauf being the third. 

Babar Azam can also opt for a pace-spin combination with Shadab Khan and Iftikhar Ahmed. 

Pakistan need nothing less than a victory to qualify for the finals. The side thrashed Bangladesh by seven wickets in their first Super Four game. 

However, their net run rate dropped to -1.892 following its 227-run thrashing at the hands of India.

If the match – which does not have a reserve day – gets washed out due to rain, Sri Lanka will qualify for the final due to better NRR (-0.200).