Shadab to lead green shirts against Kiwis in first T20I.

KARACHI -- Allrounder Shadab Khan will be leading the Pakistan Cricket Team against New Zealand in the absence of Babar Azam, sources revealed on Wednesday.

Sources said the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) management is satisfied with the cricketer's fitness after the training session.

He had previously complained of groin injury which restricted him to batting during the training session on Sunday.

The management has made the decision after Skipper Babar Azam was ruled out due to a fracture in his right thumb earlier this week.

"World's second ranked T20I batsman suffered the injury during a throw-down session, following which he was taken to a local hospital where X-rays confirmed his fracture," the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had confirmed in a statement on Sunday.

Babar's injury came just a day after Imam Ul Haq...