Hameed cleared of serious hand injury

Karachi [Pakistan], Apr. 04 (ANI): England opener Haseeb Hameed has been cleared of any serious injury after he was struck by a ball on his hand during his opening first-class game of the season for Lancashire. The 20-year-old sustained the injury in Lancashire's clash against Cambridge University at Fenner's and there were fears that he had again broken the little finger of his left hand that curtailed his tour to India. He withdrew from the match after facing just 23 balls in the game, which Lancashire went on to win by 340 runs. However, Lancashire revealed in a statement that Hameed was taken to the hospital following the incident and that scans ruled out any major damage to the bone. "Opening batsman Haseeb Hameed was struck on his left hand by Cambridge MCCU opening bowler Tim Moses on Day One at Fenner's. The 20-year-old retired hurt and went for a scan yesterday [Sunday] afternoon," the Express Tribune quoted Hameed as saying. "Haseeb has been reviewed by the club's hand specialist this morning and scans have cleared him of any bone damage. He will be assessed over the coming days," the county added. Last year, Hameed was ruled out of the final two Tests of the five-match series against India after breaking the little finger on his left hand which required surgery. The series also saw him make his dream debut, scoring 82 on his maiden senior England appearance in Rajkot before contributing an unbeaten 59 in Mohali where he batted down the order with his badly broken finger.(ANI)