Former Pakistan spinner Danish Kaneria has raised questions over the performance of wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan in crucial matches.
During a recent interview, Kaneria criticised Rizwan’s ability to perform in tough situations, citing the example of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 clash against arch-rivals India.
During the match against India, Pakistan only managed 113 runs for the loss of seven wickets while chasing a modest 120-run target.
Mohammad Rizwan was Pakistan’s top-scorer with 31 runs off 44 balls, however, he failed to take the team across the line as he got out at a crucial moment.
Danish Kaneria was asked to choose between Rizwan and Indian wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant. The former leg-spinner preferred Pant, owing to Rizwan’s inability to score in crunch situations.
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“He [Rizwan] doesn’t score runs when it matters, that’s the only problem. In the T20 World Cup, when Rizwan was on strike, Rohit Sharma deliberately brought in Jasprit Bumrah into the attack because he knew that he would get him out. It was very obvious,” he said.
Kaneria then questioned Rizwan’s shot selection against Bumrah, raising questions over his game awareness.
“How could you sweep the first ball? I mean what is this? You couldn’t score runs against Axar Patel, taking singles and doubles and putting pressure on your partner,” he added.
“Then, when you knew that a skipper has brought a fast bowler to get your wicket, you say, ‘Here, take my wicket’.”
Notably, Pakistan crashed out from the group stage of the tournament, majorly because of their upset defeat against the USA, followed by a gut-wrenching defeat against arch-rivals India.
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