Aakash Chopra: “Whether you play him in T20Is, ODIs, or Tests, somehow whenever Pakistan are struggling, it brings the best out of him”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Aakash Chopra, the former India batsman, hopes to see Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan keep stepping up while the team continues to sink in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup.
Rizwan has been Pakistan’s best batsman by far in the tournament, having accumulated 302 runs in five matches, which includes a century and a fifty, at an average of 75.50.
Even though the 31-year-old has been delivering strong performances with the bat, the men in green have been nowhere near their best as they are currently on a three-game losing streak.
However, Chopra knows that Rizwan thrives in pressure situations and expects him to do everything in his power to help his team climb out of the hole they find themselves in.
“Whether you play him in T20Is, ODIs, or Tests, somehow whenever Pakistan are struggling, it brings the best out of him,” he said on his YouTube channel as quoted by Cricket Pakistan.
Pakistan began by beating the Netherlands and Sri Lanka, against whom they chased down a target of 345, making it the highest successful run chase in World Cup history.
Following that high, everything started to fall apart for the men in green as they lost to India, Australia and Afghanistan.
With the team in need of a big win, they will be hoping to get it when they face South Africa on October 27 in Chennai.
Pakistan Squad for 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup: Fakhar Zaman, Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Babar Azam (capt), Mohammad Rizwan, Saud Shakeel, Iftikhar Ahmed, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Usama Mir, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Haris Rauf, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Hasan Ali