Sarfraz Ahmed takes nasty hit to the forearm, likely to miss Day Two of Abu Dhabi Test

Denzil Pinto 20:30 16/10/2018
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  • Sarfraz Ahmed is a doubt for the rest of the match

    Pakistan captain Sarfraz Ahmed could miss Wednesday’s play due to the hit on the forearm he received from a Mitchell Starc delivery on the opening day of the second Test against Australia.

    Sarfraz was hit around the elbow region by the Australian pacer during his 94-run knock at Sheikh Zayed Stadium which helped the hosts recover from 57-5 to 282 on Tuesday.

    The wicket-keeper batsman said he carried on as he wanted to complete his century but admitted he might have to watch as a spectator if the swelling in his arm doesn’t reduce.

    He confirmed Pakistan are looking into the possibility of bringing in Mohammad Rizwan as a substitute keeper from the Pakistan ‘A’ side, who are playing limited-over matches with New Zealand in Dubai.

    “The arm is not moving properly. It’s a bruise. I have put an ice pack but I think it could swell later. I am hopeful for the second day. I think (coach) Mickey (Arthur) was talking to the umpires about using a reserve wicketkeeper tomorrow,” he said.

    “Mohammad Rizwan is here with the Pakistan ‘A’ team. That time when I was hit I felt pain but I hanged on because I was approaching my century.”

    Sarfraz hopes his 94-run knock has silenced some of his critics after being under scrutiny of late after the disappointing Asia Cup and last week’s drawn Test in Dubai.

    He admitted there was pressure but was relieved to let the bat do the talking.

    “Yeah the pressure was there, definitely. A lot of it. You know it’s coming from all corners,” he said. “Somebody is saying leave Test cricket, somebody is saying leave captaincy, some are saying leave him out of the team. Some guys are supporting you and some are against.

    “When all this happens, you know there is a lot of pressure and it just comes from everywhere, not just one corner but all corners. So this knock has been a bit of relief and then to do it in a situation where you were 57-5 is really good.”

    The skipper said after losing half their team before lunch, the plan was to attack the Australians to have any chance of putting up a competitive total.

    “I thought that if we attack we can rescue ourselves and myself,” he said. “So I tried to attack, play shots and get some early runs. Fakhar (Zaman) played a brilliant knock (94) and from him I got very good confidence because I like that other batsman rotates the strike. He played brilliantly in his first match.”

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