Shaheen Afridi advised two-week rehab after hurting his knee during T20 World Cup final

Lahore: Pakistan’s tearaway fast bowler Shaheen Shaheen Shah Afridi has been advised two weeks of rehabilitation for the injury he suffered during Sunday’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 final against England in Melbourne, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) informed on Monday.

Afridi, who had recently returned from an injury, had landed awkwardly while taking Harry Brook’s catch during the match and experts had feared that it could impact his career if PCB did not take proper care of the injury-prone left-arm pacer.

But the PCB said the injury was as serious as expected earlier.

The scan conducted on Monday morning prior to the team’s departure for Pakistan, has confirmed there were no signs of an injury and the knee discomfort was likely “due to a forced knee flexion whilst landing”, the PCB said in a release on Monday.

“The scans were discussed between PCB’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Najeebullah Soomro, and Australian knee specialist, Dr. Peter D’Alessandro, and it was reassuring to know that there was no injury. The left-arm fast bowler is feeling better and is in high spirits,” the PCB said in the release.

Afridi will undergo a rehabilitation and conditioning programme that has been designed to strengthen his knee at the National High-Performance Centre a few days after his return to Pakistan, the PCB said.

His return to international cricket will be subject to the champion fast bowler’s successful completion of the rehabilitation programme and following go-ahead by the medical staff, the release said.

Earlier, a former PCB medical officer told the local media that the “road ahead for Afridi could be in danger if proper precautions are not taken”.

In July this year, the left-arm pacer had picked up a knee ligament injury and after going through intense rehabilitation, the 22-year-old was believed to have recovered fully. However, Sunday’s injury was thought to be a reoccurrence of that injury. It gave rise to the belief that if Afridi’s case is not monitored carefully, his career could be in jeopardy.

“If the injury doesn’t result in more injuries, it would take Shaheen three to four months to recover. If the PCB’s medical board chooses to treat it through surgery, Shaheen will be out for six, seven months,” former PCB chief medical officer Dr. Sohail Salim had told the newspaper Dawn.

Even though the injury is not that serious this time, there is a feeling gaining ground that the PCB needs to keep a close eye on the fast bowler.

–IANS