Imam-ul-Haq's Injury Sparks Inquiry Amid Pakistan's Tour Crisis

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s bruising tour of England has taken a fresh and uncomfortable twist, with a senior selector publicly questioning Imam-ul-Haq’s injury and demanding a formal inquiry into how the opening batter was handled during the heavy defeat at Lord’s.

Aaqib Javed, a member of the four-man national selection committee, has called for an investigation after Imam failed to bat in either innings of Pakistan’s 194-run loss in the second Test, despite only being diagnosed with a calf problem.

“An inquiry will be conducted into this matter,” Aaqib told private broadcaster Geo TV in an interview aired on Tuesday night, as the fallout from the Lord’s defeat deepened.

He did not hide his frustration.

“How is it possible that you failed to come out to bat in both innings after pulling up a muscle?” he said. “Injuries do occur and we have seen instances in the past where players — even with casts — have gone out and made an effort. This situation is different. It is a matter of great concern, and action will be taken regarding it.”

Imam injured his left calf in the field on the first day at Lord’s and took no further part in the match. That absence, in a Test already spiraling away from Pakistan, sparked questions at home, with former chief selector Mohammad Wasim among those voicing concern in the local media.

The scrutiny only intensified when Imam appeared on the outfield before play on the fourth day. He was limping, his left calf heavily strapped, shadow-batting in front of the cameras but still not fit enough to take the field in a competitive capacity. For critics, the optics were damaging; for the selection panel, they were infuriating.

The reaction from the Pakistan Cricket Board was swift and sweeping. Imam was one of seven players recalled from England, along with bowling coach Umar Gul and head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed, after back-to-back defeats at Headingley and Lord’s that left the tour in disarray.

The shake-up does not end there. White-ball head coach Mike Hesson and bowling coach Ashley Noffke have been handed the reins for the final Test of the series, starting in Birmingham on Sept. 9, in what amounts to an emergency reset midway through a faltering campaign.

Selecting has doubled down on change, naming five uncapped players and two relatively raw openers, Saim Ayub and Abdullah Fazal, who between them have just 10 Tests of experience. It is a bold, high-risk pivot towards youth at a time when Pakistan’s red-ball structure and decision-making are under heavy fire.

Beneath the surface, the Lord’s Test has exposed deeper fault lines.

Reports from within the camp point to serious differences between team management and Aaqib over the composition of the XI, disagreements that spilled into the open as the tour unraveled. Those tensions, insiders suggest, played a role in the mid-tour overhaul.

Aaqib wanted a different balance at Lord’s. He pushed for a fast-bowling allrounder, the inclusion of pace bowler Ubaid Shah, and a change behind the stumps with wicketkeeper-batter Ghazi Ghori coming in for Mohammad Rizwan.

Tour management resisted. They made just one change, dropping Salman Ali Agha — who had captained the side in the first Test in Babar Azam’s injury-enforced absence — while leaving Rizwan in place and ignoring Ghori.

“We can’t just keep waiting,” Aaqib said. “I had actually spoken to both the captain and the coach after the first test, suggesting they include Ubaid, who bowls at 140 kph. Agha was rightly rested, Ghazi Ghori was available on the tour and should have played instead of Rizwan.”

Those words cut to the heart of the current storm: trust, authority, and accountability.

Pakistan now head to Birmingham with a patched-up backroom staff, a remodelled squad, and a cloud over one of their senior batters. An inquiry into Imam’s injury and the medical protocols around it looms, selection disputes have spilled into public view, and a young, untested group has been thrown into the deep end of an English tour.

The scoreboard at Lord’s has stopped ticking. The questions it raised have not.