Shan Masood has been ruled out of Pakistan’s second and final Test against the West Indies after fracturing the index finger of his left hand during the series opener in Trinidad. The former captain’s injury forces Pakistan into a reshuffle just as they try to level the series in Port of Spain.

Background

Masood suffered the injury on the third day of the first Test at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy, struck on the finger while batting by a delivery from West Indies pacer Jayden Seales. He still returned to bat at number eight in Pakistan’s second innings, but the visitors collapsed to a 90-run defeat, their eighth straight Test loss away from home.

Pakistan captain Babar Azam confirmed after the match that the injury had clearly hurt the team’s batting depth, adding that Masood’s absence from his usual top-order slot was keenly felt as Pakistan were bowled out for just 120 on the final day.

Following scans and a clinical assessment, the Pakistan Cricket Board confirmed Masood would not recover in time for the second Test, which began at Queen’s Park Oval. He remains with the squad for now, undergoing treatment under the team’s medical panel, but his fitness for the opening Test against England on August 19 at Headingley in Leeds is also in doubt.

Details

To cover the gap left in the top order, Pakistan called up Abdullah Shafique and Saud Shakeel as reinforcements, with Saud Shakeel returning to the squad earlier than originally scheduled. Both batters bring recent domestic and international experience and are expected to strengthen Pakistan’s options heading into the must-win second Test.

Masood’s career numbers underline what Pakistan are missing. In 47 Tests, he has scored 2,765 Test runs at an average of 31.06, with seven centuries and 14 fifties across 90 innings, and a highest score of 156. His most recent century came in the first innings of the very Test in which he was injured, a knock of 109 that briefly steadied Pakistan’s innings.

Masood’s Test captaincy record adds further context to his current situation. He took over the Test captaincy in November 2023 after Babar Azam stepped down, but was removed from the role in July this year following a difficult run that saw Pakistan lose 12 of the 16 Tests played under his leadership, including a joint-record seven consecutive defeats. His individual form as captain actually improved, with an average of 34.06 in the role, but results did not follow, and the selection committee opted to bring Babar Azam back for a second stint as skipper ahead of the West Indies tour.

Despite losing the captaincy, Masood retained his place in the batting lineup on the strength of his personal form, a decision that appeared justified by his century in the first innings in Trinidad before the finger injury intervened.

Off the field, Shan Masood’s age, now 36, puts him among the more experienced heads in Pakistan’s current Test squad. Born in Kuwait City in October 1989, he married Nisché in January 2023, and the couple have not publicly announced having children as of now. Masood has previously spoken about his close family, including his late elder sister Mishal, who passed away in 2021 after living with a rare chromosome disorder, an experience Masood has said shaped his outlook on resilience both on and off the cricket field.

Quotes

Babar Azam, addressing reporters after the first Test defeat, said the team had clearly missed Masood once the injury forced him down the order, acknowledging that losing an experienced opener disrupted Pakistan’s batting plans for the rest of the match.

Selector Aaqib Javed, explaining the earlier decision to remove Masood from the captaincy, said the selection committee had been looking for a leader who could produce better results, noting that Masood’s own batting had remained solid even though the team’s results under his leadership had not met expectations.

The Pakistan Cricket Board, in its official statement on the injury, said Masood was undergoing treatment from the team’s medical panel and that his availability for the England series would depend entirely on his recovery and clinical progress in the coming weeks.

Impact

Masood’s absence carries real weight for Pakistan’s chances of levelling the two-match series against the West Indies, given his recent scoring form at the top of the order. It also adds further pressure on a batting lineup that has struggled for consistency throughout Pakistan’s recent run of Test defeats.

Longer term, the injury raises real uncertainty over Masood’s availability for the high-profile three-match series in England beginning August 19, a tour Pakistan will want their most experienced batters fully fit for given the difficulty of touring conditions there.

The broader context of Babar Azam’s return as captain also shapes how this injury is being read. With Masood no longer captain and now facing a race against time to recover, Pakistan’s team management will need to balance patience with his rehabilitation against the demands of a packed international calendar.

Conclusion

Pakistan’s medical staff will continue monitoring Masood’s recovery closely over the coming weeks, with his participation in the England series still very much undecided. In the meantime, the second Test against the West Indies gives players like Saud Shakeel and Abdullah Shafique a chance to stake their claim in the batting order while Masood works his way back to fitness.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the captaincy record of Shan Masood?

Shan Masood captained Pakistan in 16 Test matches between November 2023 and July 2026, winning only a handful and losing 12, including a joint-record run of seven consecutive defeats. No captain in Test cricket history had previously lost 12 of their first 16 matches in charge, and among all ten Pakistan captains with longer tenures, only Misbah-ul-Haq oversaw more total defeats. Despite the poor results, Masood’s personal batting form actually improved during his captaincy, with his average rising to 34.06 and including two centuries and seven half-centuries, before the selection committee decided to remove him from the role ahead of the West Indies tour.

When did Shan Masood become captain?

Shan Masood was appointed Pakistan’s Test captain in November 2023, taking over after Babar Azam stepped down from the role in all three formats following Pakistan’s disappointing group-stage exit at the 2023 Cricket World Cup. His tenure was meant to run through the 2023-25 World Test Championship cycle, and his first assignment as captain was Pakistan’s tour of Australia later that same month. He held the position for close to three years before being removed in July 2026, when the Pakistan Cricket Board’s selection committee decided the team needed a change in leadership following a prolonged run of poor results.

Who will be the new Test captain of Pakistan?

Pakistan has already appointed its new Test captain: Babar Azam returned to the role in July 2026, taking over from Shan Masood for the second time in his career. The Aaqib Javed-led selection committee confirmed the decision was unanimous, with Babar set to lead the side through the ongoing two-match series in the West Indies before continuing on to a three-match series in England starting August 19. Babar Azam previously captained Pakistan’s Test team before stepping down in late 2023, and his reappointment reflects the selectors’ belief that his leadership experience could help turn around the team’s recent struggles in the format.