Mohammad Rizwan: “we can have [a] left-right combination at the top and Saim Ayub is [a] left-hander. There is Fakhar Zaman also… so for [the] World Cup we were experimenting with [a] left-right combination”
Image taken by: Bimal Mirwani
Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan believes Fakhar Zaman is a possible contender as an opener in T20Is if the team management wants to have a left-right opening combination.
Rizwan and Babar Azam used to open the batting for years, but both of them came under fire for batting too slow. On top of that, they are also right-handed batsmen.
During the recent five-match T20I series against New Zealand, the men in green switched things up as Rizwan opened with young power-hitter Saim Ayub, while Azam was moved down to number three.
As for Zaman, he came in at number four during the series, but Rizwan thinks if the team management plans to experiment more in the lead-up to the 2024 T20 World Cup, it’s possible they could trial Zaman as an opener.
“Our management and captain said that we are trying out different things for the World Cup and for that we want to see what can be our best XI. Like say we can have [a] left-right combination at the top and Saim Ayub is [a] left-hander. There is Fakhar Zaman also… so for [the] World Cup we were experimenting with [a] left-right combination,” he told Cricbuzz.
“I don’t think it is a wrong decision and if I am destined to [open] in that case I will do it in future and I am not angry with the thinking process of the management and neither is Babar Azam. Look they said, we are going to West Indies and there will be spin and every country is trying for [a] left-right combination and so our management is also giving that a thought.”
Zaman is currently playing for the Lahore Qalandars in the 2024 Pakistan Super League (PSL), while Rizwan is captaining the Multan Sultans.
Lahore Qalandars Squad for PSL 9: Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Fakhar Zaman, Rassie van der Dussen, Haris Rauf, David Wiese, Sahibzada Farhan, Sikandar Raza, Abdullah Shafique, Zaman Khan, Mirza Tahir Baig, Mohammad Imran, Ahsan Hafeez, Dan Lawrence, Jahandad Khan, Syed Faridoun, Shai Hope, Kamran Ghulam, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Tayyab Abbas
Multan Sultans Squad for PSL 9: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Iftikhar Ahmed, David Willey, Khushdil Shah, Usama Mir, Dawid Malan, Abbas Afridi, Reeza Hendricks, Tayyab Tahir, Shahnawaz Dahani, Usman Khan, Mohammad Ali, Faisal Akram, Yasir Khan, Chris Jordan, Aftab Ibrahim, Johnson Charles, Mohammad Shehzad
[TS_Poll id=”111″]