Tag: Mohammad Rizwan

LAHORE: Skipper Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Afridi have been offered category A in both red and white-ball contracts as Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced central contracts for 33 players for the year 2022-23.

Pakistan national team Chief selector Muhammad Wasim, speaking at a scheduled press conference held here today to announce the central contract for players, stated that the contracts have been offered to players on the basis of their fitness and last year’s performance.

According to details, 10 players have received red-ball contracts, while 11 players have received white-ball contracts, along with Imam-ul-Haq, Hassan Ali, Babar, Rizwan, and Shaheen, who have been offered both contracts.

Meanwhile, seven high-performing domestic players have also been offered central contracts under the emerging category.

MEN’S CENTRAL CONTRACT LIST 2022-23 

Red and White-ball Contracts (5):

Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Shah Afridi (all Category A), Hasan Ali (red-ball Category B, white-ball Category C), and Imam-ul-Haq (red-ball Category C, white-ball Category B)

Red ball Contracts (10):

Category A – Azhar Ali

Category B – Fawad Alam

Category C – Abdullah Shafique, Naseem Shah, and Nauman Ali

Category D – Abid Ali, Sarfaraz Ahmed, Saud Shakeel, Shan Masood, and Yasir Shah

White-ball Contracts (11):

Category A – Fakhar Zaman and Shadab Khan

Category B – Haris Rauf

Category C – Mohammad Nawaz

Category D – Asif Ali, Haider Ali, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Qadir and Zahid Mehmood

Emerging Contracts (7):

Ali Usman (Southern Punjab), Haseebullah (Balochistan), Kamran Ghulam (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Haris (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Mohammad Huraira (Northern), Qasim Akram (Central Punjab) and Salman Ali Agha (Southern Punjab).

READ: Shaheen rises to third spot in the latest ICC ODI Bowling Rankings

HOVE: Pakistan’s wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan and the left-handed opener Ali Orr shone with the bat as the duo powered Sussex to seal a scintillating victory over Derbyshire after an incredible run chase on the final day.

Set to chase 342 on a rain-hit final day, Sussex did not hold back and produced an astounding run chase to seal their first victory since April 2021.

The persistent showers in the morning washed out 14 overs from the day’s play and as a result, prevented Derbyshire from adding some crucial and quick runs into their overnight 341-run lead.

With the action reduced by 14 overs, the Derbyshire captain Billy Godleman decided to declare their innings at the same and put on a commendable 342-run target for Sussex in the last two sessions.

In the run chase, the opener Orr set the tone with his career-best 141 and was magnificently supported by Rizwan and Tom Aslop, who scored 55 and 76* respectively.

Following an unwanted start to the run chase for Sussex as their skipper Tom Haines was trapped in front by Alex Thompson on 20 at a combined score of 41. Orr and Aslop then ticked along and laid the foundation of the astonishing run chase with a 140 runs stand for the second wicket.

The duo appeared solid as they were marching towards the total at a rapid pace before Aslop miscued a drive to mid-off after contributing 55.

The newcomer Rizwan then joined Orr at the crease and made no mistake to adapt to the required condition as the duo further added 93 runs before Orr departed after he was caught on the mid-wicket boundary off Luis Reece, having faced 203 balls and scoring his career-best 141.

Rizwan then had to battle hard with what looked like a hamstring injury and seemed unaffected by it as he kept pushing for the victory and was supported by the cameos from Delray Rawlins and Ollie Carter.

Despite losing quick wickets in the closing minutes, Rizwan and newly-joined Danial Ibrahim steered their side to the victory in the 74th over. Rizwan remained unbeaten with his gritty knock of 76 off 82 balls with the help of 10 boundaries including a six.

It is pertinent to mention here that Rizwan made his last appearance for the Sussex as he will be returning to international duty with Pakistan as the Green Shirts will be on their away assignment in the Test series against Sri Lanka.

READ: Shaheen rises to third spot in the latest ICC ODI Bowling Rankings 

HOVE: Pakistan’s wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan, who is representing Sussex in the ongoing County Championship carried on his wonderful form as he smashed a magnificent century against Derbyshire.

In the ongoing fixture of the County Championship Division Two between Derbyshire and Sussex, Pakistan’s wicket-keeper Rizwan shone with the bat as he scored his first century in the English league.

💯 FOR RIZWAN!

What a knock by the Pakistan international 👏 #LVCountyChamp pic.twitter.com/m03OWFKmDJ

— Rothesay County Championship (@CountyChamp) June 28, 2022

 

With his side Sussex struggling at 27/2 in response to Derbyshire’s mammoth 551/8, the right-handed batter anchored the innings and took his team out of danger with Tom Alsop as the duo added a valiant 95 runs for the second wicket.

The right-handed batter then held his ground firm and kept the scoreboard ticking while his batting partners walked back with significant contributions.

In the 65th over of Sussex innings, Rizwan smashed a boundary on the first delivery of Luis Reece bowling and got to his first century in the format. The right-handed batter remained unbeaten on 105 off 186 balls with the help of 18 boundaries at the Lunch break on the third day.

Following his wonderful knock, Sussex have scored 249/5 and are still trailing by 302 runs.

READ: Vaughan supports Buttler for England’s limited-over captaincy

KARACHI: Former Pakistan cricketer Rashid Latif has thrown his back behind the former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed and termed him the only backup option for Rizwan in Tests.

The former cricketer Rashid has opined on the backup of Pakistan’s primary wicket-keeper Rizwan in Tests and claimed that Sarfaraz is the only one who is equivalent to the standards of Rizwan in the longest format.

“You need a backup wicketkeeper in Test cricket of the standards equivalent to Mohammad Rizwan and Sarfaraz Ahmed is the only name right now who can perform wicket-keeping five days in a Test match,” claimed Rashid.

The former wicket-keeper batter also opined regarding the young wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Haris and claimed his inclusion cannot sideline Sarfaraz.

“Inclusion of Mohammad Haris cannot sideline Sarfaraz Ahmed,” he said.

It is pertinent to mention here Pakistan will tour Sri Lanka for the two-match Test series in July this year.

READ: Ramiz Raja donates PKR one million for Thalassemia child patients

KARACHI: Former Pakistani fast-bowler and 1992 World Cup winner Aaqib Javed advised the wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan to focus on the rotation of strike, who is struggling to get going in the ODI cricket.

The ICC Men’s T20I Player of the Year 2021, who has been in quite a sublime form in the T20I and Test cricket, is going through a rough patch in the 50-overs format.

Following his dismal performance in the ODI cricket for the past two years, the former pacer showed concern and also backed the wicket-keeper batter by claiming that the latter has all the skills to play ODI cricket.

“Mohammad Rizwan has all the skills to play the ODI format but perhaps he looks in a hurry in the ODI cricket,” Aaqib said.

Aaqib further advised Rizwan to work on his temperament and start focusing on the rotation of the strike.

“There is no technical problem with Rizwan’s game in ODIs but he should focus on rotating the strike and show temperament on the crease which will bring success to him in the format,” Aqib added.

It is pertinent to mention here that Rizwan could only manage to score 277 runs at an average of 19.78 in 14 matches since 2020, having scored two half-centuries in the same span.

READ: English pacer Katherine Brunt announces her retirement from Test Cricket

KARACHI: Former Pakistan captain and the star all-rounder Shahid Afridi has questioned the chief selector of Pakistan Men’s Cricket Team Mohammad Wasim for the inclusion of the young wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Haris.

The star all-rounder criticised Wasim for selecting Haris for the ODIs and called it a foolish decision while speaking on a local news programme.

“It was a foolish decision by these people. I won’t say this to Ramiz Raja but if Mohammad Wasim is listening, I ask him not to take such steps,” Afridi said.

“Why are you selecting a player who performed in two T20 matches for ODI cricket? Is the process that easy to earn Pakistan’s cap?” he questioned.

The former all-rounder then clarified that he is not against the inclusion of the youngsters but urged that they must play domestic cricket first. Afridi also mentioned the former captain Sarfaraz Ahmed as a candidate.

“I also back the inclusion of young players but at least let them play domestic cricket. You have Sarfaraz and Rizwan as well. It is not as if Rizwan’s cricket has finished that you have brought in another player,” he stated.

Afridi also backed the wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan, who is struggling to get going in the ODI matches recently and advised the latter to enjoy ODI cricket.

“He doesn’t need to do anything special. Rizwan should enjoy ODI cricket, similar to what he does in T20I cricket,” Afridi said.

“Expectations are so high from Rizwan, due to his performance in the recent past, that if he doesn’t do well in a two or three matches people start talking about him. But we will still back him because he is a key player in our side,” he concluded.

READ: KL Rahul to travel abroad for treatment, to miss England tour

DUBAI: Pakistan’s wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan has reclaimed his second spot to rejoin the top-ranked Babar Azam in the latest ICC T20I Batting Rankings, released by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday.

Rizwan has been elevated from third to the second spot in the latest T20I batting rankings released by the ICC, as South Africa’s right-handed batter Aiden Markram slipped a spot.

The wicket-keeper batter has now reclaimed the second spot in T20I rankings with 794 rating points as Markram’s ratings fell to 772; allowing the former to make a move upwards.

👑 @babarazam258 stays on top
📈 @iMRizwanPak moves to second place

The 🇵🇰 opening pair dominate the ICC T20I Rankings ✨ pic.twitter.com/nHy5ruYt6f

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) June 15, 2022

Star Pakistan batter Babar Azam, on the other hand, continued to rule the rankings in T20Is and ODIs and is followed by his countrymen Rizwan and Imam-ul-Haq in the two formats respectively.

READ: Imam surpasses Kohli, rises to second in ICC ODI Batting Rankings 

KARACHI: Pakistan’s star wicket-keeper Mohammad Rizwan praised Indian batter Virat Kohli for his affectionate and humble attitude off the field as he opened up on his meeting with Kohli after winning the T20 World Cup match against India last year.

“It was the first time I was meeting Kohli. The kind of things I had heard about him, other players also told me ‘Virat is aggressive and all’. But the way he met me before and after the match, it was amazing,” said Rizwan in an interview on the Youtube channel Cricket Baaz with Waheed Khan

“We all belong to the cricket family. If I call him ‘our Virat Kohli’, it is correct in the sense,” he added.

Last year, the pictures and videos of Rizwan went viral as he joyfully hugged the Indian captain and shared words with him after Pakistan thrashed India by 10 wickets first time in a world cup match.

Rizwan to date had not disclosed the chat he had with Kohli, however, admiring the attitude of Indian players, he disclosed that both teams had very different attitudes off-field and on-field.

“Obviously, when we enter the ground, no one is a star. There we have no brotherhood or anything of that sort. But outside the field, when we met Kohli, and some of our players also met MS Dhoni, we met with a lot of love and affection,” claimed Rizwan.

The wicket-keeper also opined about the quality time he spent with Indian test player Cheteshwar Pujara, both were representing Sussex in the County season.

“Even in County cricket, where Pujara is with me, believe me, we live with so much love. In fact, I am the one who keeps bugging him, calling him out. He keeps laughing,” he shared.

While expressing his views on bilateral Test matches between India and Pakistan, Rizwan claimed that players of both teams wanted to play against each other but complications at the top were not under their control.

“..He [Pujara] as far as I understood also wanted to play against Pakistan. But there must be difficulties at the top that are beyond our knowledge, otherwise, we [players] want Test, ODI, and T20 series against them [India],” Rizwan concluded.

READ: Stokes terms Foakes ‘world-class’ wicketkeeper amid talks of Buttler return

LAHORE: Pakistan’s wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan claimed that the Indian and Pakistani cricketers want to play against each other.

In a scheduled media interaction today on the sidelines of the Green Shirts’ training camp for the forthcoming home ODI series against the West Indies, Rizwan asserted that both Indian and Pakistani cricketers want to play against each other more frequently.

“At the lower level the cricketers of Pakistan and India want to play against each other but the state-level affairs are not in our control,” Rizwan stated.

The wicket-keeper also shared his experience of playing alongside India’s Cheteshwar Pujara while representing Sussex in Division 2 of the ongoing County Championship and claimed that he learned a lot from the Indian batter.

“I talked to Pujara regarding cricket in the County Championship and learned a lot of things from him,” Rizwan said.

The 30-years-old wicket-keeper also opined regarding Pakistan’s young prospect and his counterpart Mohammad Haris, saying he is a very talented wicket-keeper batter.

“Mohammad Haris is a very talented wicket-keeper batter. I wish the team includes not just one but five wicket-keepers, whoever is favourable for the team, must play,” he said.

The right-handed batter then heaped praises on the team’s bowling attack terming it to be the best in world cricket.

“Our bowling attack is the best in the world. It feels really great when I heard some English players praise our bowlers,” Rizwan stated.

Rizwan then joined fellow cricketers to comment about the scorching weather conditions in the upcoming ODI series against the West Indies and said, “The weather is hot without a doubt but it is not an excuse for us, we are playing in different challenging conditions since Under-19.”

READ: Pakistan roar back to thump Thailand, revive Division 1 qualification hopes

LAHORE: Pakistan’s all-format captain Babar Azam has thrown his weight behind the wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan for the upcoming home ODI series against West Indies.

Babar interacted with the media ahead of the team’s scheduled training camp for the West Indies series and opined regarding Rizwan, who is struggling to get going in the ODI format.

“Form is temporary in cricket and I think it is a part of the game. Rizwan is our important player and supports me in challenging times,” Babar stated.

Rizwan is currently going through a rough patch in the ODIs as the right-handed batter could only manage to score 192 runs in his last 11 matches since 2020 with a dismal average of 17.45.

Babar, on the other hand, further opined about the upcoming series and expressed his delight in playing without a managed environment after 2020.

“We are going to play cricket in a normal environment after a very long time, which is a great pleasure for us,” Babar said.

“We are very happy and excited for the commencement of the camp. We’ll be playing in Multan after a long period and it is delightful for us,” he added.

“It is very hot there but we are ready to accept the challenge. We’ll be holding the camp at 2 PM in order to tackle the extreme weather,” he maintained.

While talking about the preparations for the forthcoming series, Babar claimed that he is aiming for the upcoming ICC Men’s World Cup 2023 and is looking to prepare accordingly.

“We have the 2023 World Cup in mind and we are preparing for it. This series is very important for us as it is a part of the World Cup Super League,” he said.

“We do not consider any team as an easy opponent as every team takes the field with full preparations. We, ourselves, did not play international cricket for the last two months. Our players, however, were playing County Cricket in England but I think domestic cricket is different than international cricket,” Babar added.

Pakistan’s skipper further claimed himself as a fully independent captain while also emphasising the need of giving proper chances to the players and to only analyze their performances after a particular time.

“I am an independent captain while I also think that everyone has a different way of thinking,” he claimed.

“In order to establish a good side, we need to provide consistent opportunities to the players and should only review their performances once they get consistent opportunities for a certain period,” he concluded.

It is apropos to mention here that Pakistan will take on the West Indies in a three-match ODI series. The three matches will be played on June 8, 10, and 12 respectively.

READ: Fatima shines as Pakistan bowl out Sri Lanka on 169 in the first ODI