Mohammad Rizwan has been knocking on the door of Pakistan’s captaincy for quite a while now. Sure, one can raise questions over his T20 batting approach, but when it comes to leading the team? There’s very little doubt in Rizwan’s abilities.
Last November, when Babar Azam stepped down as captain, many assumed that Rizwan would be appointed as an all-format skipper. However, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) surprised everyone.
Instead of Rizwan, they handed the T20I captaincy to Shaheen Afridi and gave the Test captaincy to Shan Masood. And for the ODI side? The PCB hit the pause button—deciding to leave the position vacant until November 2024, when ODIs would be on the horizon again.
Fast forward a bit, and just before the T20 World Cup, they circled back to Babar for white-ball captaincy. And we all know how disastrous that decision was.
Now, with Pakistan about to head to Australia for three ODIs and three T20Is, and Babar officially stepping away from captaincy, it feels like the perfect moment for Rizwan to finally take over. But there’s no guarantee that it’s happening. Not yet, anyway.
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Why All the Confusion?
Mohammad Rizwan is the obvious choice, no doubt. He’s consistent, experienced, and highly respected in the dressing room. Players listen when he speaks, and that’s half the battle when you’re leading a side. But despite all this, the PCB is still keeping their options open. Seriously.
There’s been chatter about Mohammad Haris, a relatively young gun, for the T20I captaincy. Saud Shakeel and Fakhar Zaman are reportedly being considered for both T20I and ODI captaincy. And just to spice things up, names like Shadab Khan, Salman Ali Agha, and Saim Ayub have been thrown into the hat.
Now, I’m scratching my head here. Why is there such a long list of candidates when Rizwan, a proven leader, is right there? And no offence, but a couple of these names are still trying to find their footing in the national team.
We can talk about how none of the above-mentioned players deserve to be captain right now, but that discussion is for another day. Let’s talk about Rizwan.
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The Workload Argument
One theory being tossed around is that the PCB wants to manage Rizwan’s workload. They’re apparently toying with the idea of having separate captains for ODIs and T20Is or naming a strong vice-captain to share the burden.
On paper, it sounds reasonable. With Pakistan’s jam-packed schedule, maybe Rizwan could use some help. From November Pakistan is scheduled to play 18 ODIs and T20Is lined up against Australia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa.
They will then play a two-Test series in South Africa, then a tri-series at home and the ICC Champions Trophy. And let’s not forget, there’s a New Zealand series right before the Pakistan Super League (PSL) season 10. It’s a lot of cricket.
Head coach Gary Kirsten and the selectors have raised concerns about Rizwan handling this heavy load, which is why they’re considering appointing a different captain or a young vice-captain, who can step in to give rest to Rizwan.
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Is There More to the Story?
While managing Rizwan’s workload sounds like a reasonable explanation, there’s a bit of a twist here. Mohammad Rizwan has been playing non-stop cricket since 2020, and other than a brief break during the Afghanistan series in early 2023, he’s always been on the field.
He is one of the fittest players in the Pakistan cricket team. Even when he’s dealing with cramps, the guy never misses a game. So why is the workload suddenly a concern now?
It makes you wonder—could there be something more at play here? Maybe something is going on behind the scenes. Whatever the reason, the uncertainty surrounding Rizwan’s future as captain is definitely raising some eyebrows.
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