Saim Ayub decision to miss “up to six weeks” due to a fractured right ankle sustained on the first morning of the Test in Cape Town dealt a serious blow to Pakistan.
Due to the diagnosis, he will miss Pakistan’s home tri-series against South Africa and New Zealand in February as well as their two Test matches against the West Indies later this month. He is also running out of time to be ready for the Champions Trophy, which starts in Karachi in a little more than six weeks.

An MRI scan on Friday “confirmed the fracture, which has been immobilized in an ankle medical moon boot,” according to the PCB. Until the Test is over, Ayub will stay with the team.
Ayub was about to be the relay fielder when he stumbled and hurt his ankle, but Jamal dragged it back in. As the physio hurried on, he dropped down instantly and looked distressed, clutching the bottom of his leg.
Ayub was unable to bear any weight on his right ankle after receiving extensive care beyond the boundary line, and he seemed to be crying when he was transferred to a stretcher and removed. Later, he was saw in the medical boot on crutches.
Ayub has become a Pakistani all-format sensation in recent months, playing key parts in ODI series victories away in Australia and Zimbabwe as well as here in South Africa, where he was voted Player of the Series after hitting two hundreds in three games.
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