Imad Wasim: “He might have not gotten a chance to open if he stayed with us, so I am happy he left us and proved everyone wrong”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Imad Wasim said Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan may have never become an opener had he not left the Karachi Kings.
Rizwan was not being used regularly by the Kings and subsequently joined the Multan Sultans when they picked him in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) draft in 2021.
He became captain of the franchise and went on to establish himself as a brilliant opener. As a result, the 30-year-old now opens the batting for Pakistan in T20Is.
“He might have not gotten a chance to open if he stayed with us, so I am happy he left us and proved everyone wrong,” Imad was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.
In PSL 8 this year, Rizwan was right at the top of the run-scorers table as he made 550 runs in 11 matches for the Sultans, which included a century and four fifties, at an average of 55 and a strike-rate of 142.85.
He followed that up with 162 runs in five T20Is against New Zealand, which included two fifties, at an average of 54 and a strike-rate of 139.65.
As for the five-match ODI series that was played after, Rizwan accumulated 161 runs, which included a top score of 54 not out, at an average of 53.66.