Mohammad Rizwan: “He is like my brother. There is no issue between us”
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Mohammad Rizwan has made it clear that there is no rift between him and fellow wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfaraz Ahmed.
Rizwan has become the team’s go-to wicketkeeper-batsman, while Sarfaraz, who used to be the first choice for the position and captain in all three formats, is now the back-up option.
Sarfaraz is still picked in the team, but has only played a couple of games lately.
“He is like my brother. There is no issue between us. My relationship with Saifi Bhai is the same as my relationship with Babar Azam, Azhar Ali and Shaheen Afridi,” Rizwan told Cricket Pakistan.
“When I initially played for Pakistan, I used to field and Sarfaraz used to keep wickets. We did the same in [the] recent Africa tour and everything was great. This is not my club team. It is Pakistan’s team and our objective is to perform for Pakistan. I respect Sarfaraz as a senior.”
His comments come ahead of the resumption of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) in Abu Dhabi from June 9 to 24.
The Multan Sultans, who Rizwan captains, currently sit in fifth place on the standings as they have won just one of their five games.
Rizwan was the top run-scorer prior to the PSL’s postponement earlier this year with 297 runs in five matches, which included three half-centuries, at an average of 59.40 and a strike-rate of 140.09.
Ahead of the restart, Rizwan has been in red-hot form for Pakistan and did extremely well during the recent tour of South Africa and Zimbabwe.
He amassed 42 runs in the three-match ODI series against against South Africa at an average of 14.
However, the 29-year-old turned thing around with 147 runs, which included two half-centuries, in the four-match T20 series at an average of 73.50 and a strike-rate of 147.
He continued to shine in the three-match T20 series against Zimbabwe as he amassed 186 runs, which included two fifties, at an average of 186 and a strike-rate of 133.81.
In the two-Test series, he made 66 runs at an average of 33.
Sarfaraz, who captains the Quetta Gladiators, has also been in good form in the PSL as he is currently the fifth-highest run-scorer with 185 runs in five games, which included two half-centuries, at an average of 37 and a strike-rate of 146.82.
The Sultans will be in action on June 10 when they take on the Karachi Kings, who are the defending champions.
As for the Gladiators, they will face Islamabad United on June 11.