Pakistan's hopes of defending their Champions Trophy title have taken a significant dent with opener Fakhar Zaman ruled out of the remainder of the tournament with an oblique injury. The International Criminal Court has approved Imam-ul-Haq as Fakhar's replacement. When Fakhar went off in pursuit of a cover drive from Will Young off Shaheen Shah Afridi on the first ball of the tournament, he sustained the injury. He appeared to be in some discomfort as he took the ball. He was taken off the field after receiving treatment there, and he was out for more than two hours. As a result, he was unable to open Pakistan's batting, and when he did, he was clearly disoriented. During his 41-ball stay at the crease, he received multiple visits from the team doctor and physiotherapist and took painkillers on the field. With his movements restricted, it seemed like a tortured innings, and he didn't appear to have much of an impact on Pakistan's pursuit of the 320 New Zealand had scored. He got a score of 24 before he was kicked out. Fakhar and Pakistan especially suffer from the injury. Saim Ayub, Pakistan's standout opener in their three away series victories at the end of last year, was struck down in similar circumstances, and he only returned to the team. In the second Test against South Africa in January, he went after a ball down to the boundary, twisting his ankle, which was later determined to be fractured. He won't be available until at least March. This tournament was Fakhar's most well-known contribution to Pakistani cricket. He was the star batter in the 2017 Champions Trophy final, when Pakistan defeated India and scored 114 runs to win. Imam, who joins the team, has not played international cricket since 2023 and does not have the same history of violence as Fakhar. He does, however, have an excellent record as the opener, batting at an average of 48.27 and scoring nine centuries in 72 ODIs. Pakistan's chances of winning the trophy are already in jeopardy after losing to New Zealand by 60 runs in the tournament's opening match. Their next match is against India on February 23 in Dubai.