KARACHI: Pakistan’s star pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi underwent surgery on Sunday, a week after a knee injury forced him on the sidelines during the T20 World Cup final against England in Melbourne, according to a Dawn.com report.

“Had an appendectomy today but Alhamdulillah feeling better now. Remember me in your prayers,” Afridi tweeted while posting his post-surgery photo.

During the World Cup final, Shaheen landed awkwardly on his right knee while taking Harry Brook’s catch during Sunday’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 final in what ended up being a five-wicket defeat for Babar Azam and co. before aborting his third over.

The surgery was carried out to remove the appendix.

Last week, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had “advised” Shaheen two weeks of rehabilitation, adding that the feared injury was nothing but “discomfort” following impact during the fielding effort. It had said Shaheen would undergo a “rehabilitation and conditioning programme”, designed to strengthen his knee at the National High-Performance Centre for a few days.

The PCB had added that Shaheen’s return to international cricket would be subject to the successful completion of the rehabilitation programme and following go-ahead by the medical staff.

Published in Dawn, November 21st, 2022