Injured Sohail Tanvir out of New Zealand series

Sohail Tanvir, the Pakistan fast bowler, has been ruled out of the New Zealand tour that starts later this month due to a knee injury. His place in the Twenty20 squad will be taken by 24-year-old top-order batsman Asad Shafiq, while no replacement has yet been named for the Tests.

"He is not fully fit, he tried hard in the camp, but he requires more time as he faces problems while fielding," the Pakistan team manager, Intikhab Alam, said. The squad is currently taking part in a preparatory camp in Lahore ahead of the tour.

Tanvir, 26, burst onto the scene during the inaugural World Twenty20 in 2007, surprising batsmen with his awkward wrong-footed delivery, but has struggled with injuries over the past couple of years. He suffered a back injury after the World Twenty20 in 2009, and was out of action for four months this year after knee surgery.

The tour kicks off with three Twenty20s, starting on December 26 in Auckland, followed by two Tests and six one-day internationals. Pakistan are yet to name a squad for the one-dayers, and deferred the announcement on Wednesday. The board also postponed the naming of the 30-man preliminary list for the World Cup.

"A meeting of the selection committee and integrity committee was held in Lahore and all the issues relating to the clearance of players came under discussion," a PCB statement said. "The committee decided that further consideration of this matter is required. The one-day squad for New Zealand and that for World Cup will be announced at a later date."

The World Cup probables have to be named by December 19. Three players - allrounder Shoaib Malik, wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal and legspinner Danish Kaneria - were left out of the Test and Twenty20 squads for the New Zealand after the PCB refused to clear them for the series. Three other players - Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif - have been suspended by the ICC over charges of spot-fixing that arose during Pakistan's tour of England in August.