Shoaib in new injury scare

Shoaib Akhtar has twisted his ankle during Pakistan's ongoing conditioning camp and been advised to rest for the next few days. He remains with the squad and it is thought the injury is not serious enough to rule him out of the England tour.

Shoaib has been taken off weight-bearing exercises for a week before his re-evaluation after scans revealed a swelling in his ankle. He will continue training in the gym and the swimming pool.

Abbas Zaidi, the PCB director, told Cricinfo that Shoaib had actually twisted his ankle soon after the camp started a few days ago. "He was bowling in the nets and he stayed behind late to get some extra work done when he twisted it. I don't think it is serious but let's hope he recovers soon from it. He remains at the National Cricket Academy for now." A member of the fitness team told Cricinfo that the injury is "not a serious one at all and Shoaib should be completely ready for the England tour."

Shoaib has been out of the game since February, when a stress fracture to his ankle ruled him out of the ODI series against India. That injury had first emerged during the last Test in December against England at Lahore, though he continued playing after it. He also went to Australia to have surgery on both knees in the same period, after discovering that he was suffering from a degenerative knee disorder. It is unclear at the moment whether he has twisted the same ankle.

Until this latest injury, Zaidi said that according to Grant Compton, the team's fitness trainer, Shoaib had been bowling well and seemed to have recovered his speed. Zaidi told The News, "We are confident that Shoaib will prove that he is fit enough to be a part of the England team. He has already lost weight and looks sharp. But we will wait and see how he performs during the camp where he could be bowling up to 18 overs at a stretch." At this point, no mention had been made of Shoaib's latest injury.

This injury may explain conflicting reports in Pakistan about Shoaib's absence from the conditioning camp under progress in Lahore for Pakistan's tour of England.

A section of the press recently reported that Shoaib has been missing from the conditioning camp since it began on May 25 and quoted Shaharyar Khan, the PCB chairman, as saying that he too is looking for him. But Zaidi told The News, "In recent days, there have been a lot of sensational stories over Shoaib's absence from the (conditioning) camp. But I must say that there is little truth in them. These are all speculative reports."

Meanwhile, the conditioning camp in Lahore will get into top gear from Monday as the national team players, who returned from a brief, private tour of Saudi Arabia, will begin training for England.

Inzamam and several other key players including Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Abdul Razzaq and several others recently featured in two exhibition matches that pitted a Pakistan XI against an Asian XI in Jeddah last week.

Zaidi said that from the team that returned home on Sunday, the Lahore-based players have already reported at the camp. Some of the other players will join the camp today.