LAHORE, Feb 23: Paceman Shoaib Akhtar’s fitness problems have further aggravated after it was discovered through an X-ray that he is nursing a knee injury in addition to his ankle problem.

The doctors, after reviewing his X-ray recommended that Shoaib who is leaving for Australia on Friday morning for treatment of his ankle should also undergo a test for his knee problem.

Shoaib, who played to his full potential in the home series against England both in Test and ODIs series and in Test series against India, become unfit due to ankle injury and missed the five ODI series against India.

PCB director cricket operations, Saleem Altaf, told Dawn that Dr David Young would check Shoaib in Australia.

He said the officials of India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan were meeting in New Delhi, India on Friday to start preliminary discussion in the wake of bid tendered jointly by the four countries for the right of hosting World Cup-2011.

PCB chairman Shaharyar M Khan will represent Pakistan in the meeting.

Australia and New Zealand are also the joint candidates of the World Cup.