The veteran middle order batsman has long been troubled by lower back spasms and he re-aggravated the issue during the third and final Test match against South Africa in Perth, which ended in a 309-run crushing. Cricket Australia, on Wednesday ordered the ODI and Test skipper to miss the opening round of the domestic Twenty20 tournament so that he could recover in-time for the first Test against Sri Lanka next week.
"Our medical staff have advised Michael not to play cricket this weekend," Cricket Australia team performance manager Pat Howard said in a statement on Wednesday.
Pakistan Cricket Board has confirmed that senior batsman Mohammad Yousuf will not be considered for selection ahead of the limited-overs tour of India.
Pakistan cricket team is scheduled to tour India for two T20 Internationals and three One Day Internationals, between December 26 and January 7. The team for the limited-overs affair will be picked sometime next week, but the PCB chief selector Iqbal Qasim has made it clear that Yousuf is not a contender for the India-Pakistan series.
"Yousuf is not under consideration for the tour to India," Qasim shared when asked during a media interaction about the team selection for the forthcoming ODI and T20 series against the archrivals, India. "As far as Yousuf is concerned we are not sure about his form and fitness right now and he will not be considered for the Indian tour," the former Test spinner added further.
Yousuf has not been picked for a national assignment since November 2010 due to many reasons, primarily form and fitness.
Bangladesh skipper Mushfiqur Rahim has conceded that the presence of veteran all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan would have made a difference in the ODI series against West Indies, however he said that the left-hander’s absence has opened up opportunities for young players, which bodes well for future.
"It would have been a lot better performance with Shakib,” said the Bangladesh skipper. “Due to his absence, the younger players have a chance to play in this series. It is a big opportunity for them... We have guys now who perform so we have more than just Tamim and Shakib to rely upon,” he added further.
Shakib Al Hasan has been ruled out of the five-ODI series and the following one-off T20 International against the Windies due to a shin injury, which he had sustained during the 0-2 Test series defeat at the hands of the same opposition.
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