ICC approve Mahmood as Razzaq's replacement

Azhar Mahmood will have to fulfill Abdul Razzaq's allrounder duties in the West Indies © Getty Images

Azhar Mahmood, the Pakistan allrounder, has been permitted by the technical committee of the ICC to replace the injured Abdul Razzaq in Pakistan's World Cup squad. Razzaq sustained a knee injury during a practice session on February 26 and doctors have said that he might be out of action for up to three weeks.

Mahmood had not been a part of Pakistan's one-day plans since February 2005 before he received a recall, due to a spate of injuries, during Pakistan's tour of South Africa last January. Leading up to the World Cup he was the second player to be called up as a replacement after Stuart Clark joined Australia's squad after Brett Lee was ruled out with an ankle injury.

The ICC said that they had not yet received official requests from the Pakistan board for the replacement of Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif who were also found unfit to participate in the tournament. Pakistan named Yasir Arafat and Mohammad Sami as their replacements.