Pakistan fast bowler Naseem Shah tests positive for COVID-19

Pakistan's Naseem Shah celebrates after bowling out India's KL Rahul during the Asia Cup Twenty20 international cricket Group A match between India and Pakistan at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai on August 28, 2022. (AFP/File)
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Updated 29 September 2022
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Pakistan fast bowler Naseem Shah tests positive for COVID-19

  • Shah was discharged from hospital on Thursday after being diagnosed with pneumonia
  • Shah played only one game in 7-match series against England at Karachi before being rested

LAHORE: Pakistan fast bowler Naseem Shah has tested positive for COVID-19 and will miss the remaining two Twenty20s against England, the Pakistan Cricket Board said on Thursday.

Shah was discharged from hospital on Thursday after being diagnosed with pneumonia and the PCB said the fast bowler was feeling “much better.”

“Shah is back in the team hotel where he will follow all COVID-19 protocols,” the PCB said in a statement.

Pakistan is due to leave for New Zealand next Monday to participate in a triangular Twenty20 series also featuring Bangladesh.

The PCB didn’t clarify whether the fast bowler will accompany the team to New Zealand.

Shah played only one game in the seven-match series against England at Karachi before being rested. He returned expensive figures of 0-41 off his four overs in the first match, which England won by six wickets.

He was admitted to hospital late Tuesday night in Lahore with a chest infection and fever.

Pakistan leads the series 3-2 with back-to-back narrow wins at Karachi and Lahore in the last two games as England couldn’t chase down below-par totals.

The remaining two matches will be played on Friday and Sunday at Lahore.


Twice champion Naomi Osaka out of Australian Open

Updated 24 January 2026
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Twice champion Naomi Osaka out of Australian Open

  • Osaka said ‌on ⁠social media ‌that her body needed attention following her previous match against Sorana Cirstea

MELBOURNE: Twice Australian Open champion Naomi Osaka has pulled out of the Grand Slam ahead of her scheduled third round match on Saturday, citing a fitness problem.
Her opponent, Australian Maddison Inglis, has a walkover into the fourth round.
Japanese 16th seed Osaka, the 2019 and 2021 ‌winner at ‌Melbourne Park, said ‌on ⁠social media ‌that her body needed attention following her previous match against Sorana Cirstea, without elaborating on the issue.
“I’ve had to make the difficult decision to withdraw to address something my body ⁠needs attention for after my last match,” she ‌wrote.
“I was so excited ‍to keep ‍going and this run meant the ‍most to me, so having to stop here breaks my heart but I can’t risk doing any further damage so I can get back on the court.”
The pull-out is a ⁠setback for Osaka, who has been returning to her best and made the US Open semifinals last year.
At Melbourne Park, Osaka made a huge splash before her opening match against Antonia Ruzic when she entered Rod Laver Arena in a jellyfish-inspired outfit, one of the boldest fashion ‌statements seen at a Grand Slam.