West Indies have suffered a big setback as Brandon King has been ruled out for the remainder of the ongoing second Test against Pakistan after suffering a back injury at Queen’s Park Oval.
Cricket West Indies (CWI) confirmed that King injured his back while producing a brilliant run-out to dismiss Babar Azam during Pakistan’s innings. He will not bat on Day 4 of the second and final Test. Amid this, Ben Stokes’ AUD 600K BBL deal leaves Australian cricketers angry.
Brandon King suffers back injury against Pakistan
Before the injury, King had made an important contribution with the bat, scoring 40 runs off 50 balls in West Indies’ first innings. It was a big blow for the hosts, as they have already lost seven wickets for 107 runs, and now they are one player short in the second innings against Pakistan.
Babar Azam had resumed Day 3 on 84 and looked in complete control. He was batting confidently and looked ready to end his long wait for a Test hundred. But everything changed in just a few seconds after a costly misunderstanding with opening batter Abdullah Shafique.
The Pakistan captain pushed the ball towards the off side and tried to get a quick single. However, there was confusion between the two batters, leaving Babar stranded in the middle of the pitch. Amid this, Ajinkya Rahane lifts lid on Virat Kohli’s leadership and batting approach.
Brandon King reacted brilliantly as the West Indies batter quickly collected the ball and hit the stumps with a direct throw, catching Babar well short of his crease and ending his innings in heartbreaking fashion. It was a big wicket, but the celebrations did not last long.
Brandon King ruled out of Pakistan Test after painful back injury
While releasing the throw, King suffered a lower back injury and immediately fell to the ground in pain. Later, the West Indies player was taken off the ground on a stretcher, and Cricket West Indies (CWI) confirmed that King had suffered lower back muscle spasms.
The CWI had stated: “Following initial medical assessments, Brandon King is experiencing lower back muscle spasms. He is currently being monitored and evaluated by the team’s medical staff. As a precaution, the batter will not return to the field for the remainder of today’s play.”
Now, fresh reports claimed that Brandon King has been ruled out of the remainder of the second and final Test against Pakistan due to a back injury. The West Indies batter didn’t come to bat in the second innings as the hosts were restricted to 117 runs against the West Indies.
JUST IN: Brandon King has suffered a lower back injury and will not be able to bat for the West Indies pic.twitter.com/cDJgMNne9y
— Cricinfo (@cricinfo) August 5, 2026
Pakistan inches away to level the West Indies Test series 1-1
Pakistan now needs 75 runs to level the two-match Test series against the West Indies. This will be a huge boost for the Pakistan side as they are going through one of their toughest phases in Test cricket. They are currently at the bottom of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 standings and are ranked seventh in the ICC Test rankings.
The team has not won a single away Test since beating Sri Lanka in July 2023, while their last Test series victory came against England in October 2024, and that too was at home.
