Mohammad Hafeez diagnosed with Dengue, T20 WC plans in jeopardy

Pakistan’s T20 World Cup campaign has hit a massive road bump as senior player Mohammad Hafeez is doubtful for the T20 World Cup after contracting Dengue. The star all-rounder is currently undergoing treatment in Lahore and his participation in the showpiece event is in jeopardy. Normally, a person infected with Dengue can take a month or so to regain peak fitness.

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"It depends on the severity of the dengue virus that one has contracted but yes it is an illness that leaves one pretty weak and it takes around a month to regenerate platelets and make a full recovery," a local doctor said.

Earlier, the 41-year-old complained of food poisoning during the first leg of the National Championship in Rawalpindi. However, when his condition didn’t improve, he went to Lahore where he was diagnosed with Dengue. The senior player is a key member of the squad and brings in tons of experience with him.

Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will have to take a call on Hafeez before 10th October, the cutoff date to name the final squad. The Pakistan squad is expected to leave for UAE in the second week of October. Meanwhile, questions are being raised on the Pakistan squad for the T20 World Cup. The PCB left out players like Fakhar Zaman, Shoaib Malik and Sarfaraz Ahmed and included Azam Khan, leaving many bemused. There are reports that Pakistan may make few changes in their squad.

“I don’t know why certain players were picked and a few were left out. I have heard that there are plans to announce a modified T20 World Cup squad. My individual thinking is that this is not the right team. Ideally, there should have been two-three changes. So yeah, don’t agree with the squad chosen but this is our team so we have to support it at the World Cup,” said former skipper Shahid Afridi questioning the omission of few players from the T20 World Cup squad.