Pak World Cup squad to undergo fitness test on Feb 27-28

Lahore, Feb 24 (UNI) Pakistan's World Cup bound squad will undergo a fitness test on Februay 27 and 28 before leaving for the West Indies and any player failing to clear it would be left out of the side.

''Fitness is of utmost importance and any player failing to prove that would be out of the World Cup,'' PCB Director of Operations Salim Altaf told 'The News'.

Pakistan are struggling with injuries to strike bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif with Umar Gul also looking dicey at the moment.

Shoaib is recuperating from a knee injury that he picked on the tour of South Africa, while Asif is nursing a tennis elbow.

Gul, meanwhile, is busy dealing with a stress fracture.

The PCB official said the players will have to prove themselves physically capable for the event as even half-fit members will not be allowed to go in the demanding tournament.

Pakistan already have pacers Mohammad Sami, Shahid Nazir, all-rounder Azhar Mahmood, opener Salman Butt and wicket-keeper Zulqarnain Haider on its reserves list to deal with any injury issues.

UNI