Fakhar Zaman reveals reason behind his international absence

Fakhar Zaman hasn’t played for Pakistan since the conclusion of the T20 World Cup in June 2024, leading to speculations over the left-hander’s international future. Zaman wasn’t part of Pakistan’s big white-ball tours to Australia or South Africa. 

The 34-year-old quashed all the rumours, stating that a ‘medical condition’ was why he missed the big tours. But the southpaw is confident that he will return to Pakistan’s setup the next time they play a limited-overs series. 

“Hundred percent I will play for Pakistan (again),” Zaman told on the Vipers Voice podcast. “Actually, many people do not know about that, but after the T20 World Cup I got sick and because of my medical condition, I was not fit, so I was not a part of the team. 

“But now I recovered a hundred percent, and you will see me in the next international series which Pakistan plays.”

Pakistan’s next major white-ball tournament is the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. Would we see the left-hander back in Pakistan’s colours for that series? 

“My plan has been around the Champions Trophy (in 2025),” he said. “I did not play in the Australia tour or in the South Africa tour, so my whole plan was just to play in the Champions Trophy to make myself available and to be fully fit for the tournament," he said.

“That was in the back of my mind, and I am thankful, and I am lucky to be fit right now. I started from the Champions Trophy 2017 and that went really well for me and now I am very excited for the next edition also.”

Unfortunately, during the two-match Test series against South Africa, Pakistan suffered a big blow, with Saim Ayub walking off injured. While the injury seemed serious initially, the 34-year-old remained calm, expecting the youngster to be back in the setup. 

Not only that, he went one step further, hailing Ayub to become one of the top three players in world cricket. 

“I hope and I believe that he will recover quickly, and I was thinking yesterday to call Saim [Ayub] just to talk to him about this injury,” he said. “Believe me, he is such a great player that if he continues to play for the next four to five years, he will be at the top and he will be amongst the top three players in the world.”