Pakistan's Shoaib and Asif to miss World Cup

KARACHI, Mar 1 (Reuters) Pakistan pace bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif have been ruled out of the World Cup due to injury, a senior cricket board official said today.

''Yasir Arafat and Mohammad Sami will be sent as their replacements,'' chief selector of the Pakistan Cricket Board Wasim Bari told reporters.

The loss of the new-ball pair comes as a major blow to Pakistan's hopes ahead of the tournament in the Caribbean, which starts on March 13.

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