The rise of Mohammad Rizwan has been nothing short of spectacular. The Pakistani wicket-keeper batter is the leading run-scorer in T20Is and T20s in 2021 and has gone from strength to strength since his promotion to the top of the order.
While Rizwan is one of the top cricketers in the world and one of the superstars of Pakistan cricket, this was certainly not the case just a few years ago. He was considered as a secondary wicket-keeper and was behind the likes of Sarfaraz Ahmed and Kamran Akmal in the pecking order. He was never considered as a reliable batter and this was certainly not the case in the shortest format of the game.
The 29-year old could not even make it to the starting line-up in Pakistan Super League (PSL). He was drafted by Lahore Qalandars in the first season of PSL and was shifted to Karachi Kings after underwhelming performances. While Rizwan managed to win a PSL title with Karachi Kings in the fifth edition, he only played a few matches as West Indian Chadwick Walton started ahead of him.
This adversity was nothing new for Mohammad Rizwan. He had been used to overcoming the odds ever since his debut season in Pakistan’s domestic circuit. Rizwan made his debut in first-class cricket in 2008 after a lot of deliberation between the coaching staff on whether to include him in the squad or not. Current Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s head coach, Abdur Rehman was the coach that took a stand against the higher-ups and insisted on including Rizwan in the squad.
Abdur Rehman’s faith in Rizwan paid off in his first-ever first-class match as he scored a solid half-century while other Peshawar batter’s failed. Although Peshawar had lost the match, Rizwan’s performance showcased the skills he possessed.
Despite a magnificent performance, the regional selectors were not in favor of including him in Peshawar’s squad for their next match against Karachi in Karachi. Again, Abdur Rehman took a stand and did not allow the team bus to leave without Rizwan. Finally, the higher-ups succumbed to Abdur Rehman’s stance and allowed Rizwan to travel with the team.
Prior to the start of the match, Rizwan got injured and told the coach that he is not fit to play. The coach replied, “tu mar jaayega laikin tu match khelega (you’ll die but you will play the match).” Rizwan once again rose to the occasion and despite suffering from an injury, he scored yet another half-century to draw the match for Peshawar.
Rizwan and Abdur Rehman re-united once again as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa lifted the 2021 National T20 Cup. While, Rizwan had captained the team for the majority of the tournament, he was unavailable to take part in the second phase of the tournament due to Pakistan’s 2021 T20 World Cup campaign.
The gritty wicket-keeper batter was fortunate enough to be promoted up the order by former Pakistan head coach, Misbah-ul-Haq. He has not looked back since then and his performances in all formats of the game speak for themselves.
Source: Pro Pakistani