County Championship: Naseem Shah to miss next four games

Pakistani fast bowler Naseem Shah has been rested for a month in his debut match for Gloucestershire amid injury.

During the clash with Northamptonshire, which marked his first match in the County Championship, he bowled 11 overs ahead of suffering from a shoulder injury.

The injury made him unavailable for their fixture against Yorkshire last week.

Gloucestershire confirmed that Naseem will miss the next four fixtures. However, they stated that he should be eligible for selection against Middlesex in their first T20 Blast match on May 26. For his treatment, he will remain in Bristol.

“Following discussions between the medical teams of both Gloucestershire and the Pakistan Cricket Board, it has been decided that a period of workload management is in Naseem’s best interest to allow him to get back to full fitness as quickly and safely as possible,” a statement said.

Naseem had been contracted for the first part of the Championship season and the Blast, but if he is selected for Pakistan’s ODI series against the West Indies in June, his availability may be limited.

Marcus Harris and Zafar Gohar, two other overseas players in the Gloucestershire team, will continue to play in the Championship while Naseem is away.