World class speedster Shoaib Akhtar remains in doubt for the upcoming fourth Test against England at The Oval.
While Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer has refused to rule out the possibility of his strike bowler starting the Test, it is believed Shoaib has failed to recover sufficiently from an ankle injury. .jpg)
The stress fracture in his ankle has kept him out of competitive cricket since last January, and Pakistan is likely to wait until the one day series before playing him.
Woolmer said Shoaib is close to full match fitness but admits he is cautious about using him too early.
"He did look very fit yesterday but obviously short of match practice, but overall I thought he looked very good," he told the BBC.
"The plan had been for him to bowl at least 30 overs for him to be ready."
Shoaib, originally set to test his fitness in two practice matches against West Indies A at the weekend, failed to get many opportunities after rain caused Sunday's match to be abandoned.
"Everything happens for a reason and maybe this is a sign that he is not ready to play in a Test match," said Woolmer.
"The management think that if he is ready for the five one-day internationals then that would be the perfect scenario."
"He'll have 10 overs a game and he can really start to get fit and then he's got the ICC Champions Trophy."
