Mohammad Rizwan named Pakistan’s T20I vice-captain

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has appointed star wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan as the new vice-captain for the Pakistan T20I cricket team. The PCB announced the news across its various social media handles. Acting as Shaheen Shah Afridi’s deputy, Rizwan’s appointment could be one that could be fruitful for the side.

Rizwan’s duties will begin with Pakistan’s upcoming five-game T20I series against New Zealand. It is slated to begin on January 12. The side’s horrid run in the ODI World Cup 2023 saw the PCB make big changes. PCB removed star batter Babar Azam as the skipper in all formats.

Shaheen Afridi was named the new skipper of the T20I side, and the appointment of Rizwan as the pacer’s deputy makes sense on paper in the context of workload management for the 23-year-old. It is worth noting that Pakistan has already landed in Auckland ahead of their five-game series against the Black Caps. They begin their preparations for the T20 World Cup.

Pakistan aim to do better after Test defeat from Australia

Speaking of Pakistan’s recent performances, the side recently concluded their three-game Test series against Australia. Taking on the Pat Cummins-led side, the visitors were winless as they were clean-swept by the Aussies.

However, with the T20 World Cup looming on the horizon, Pakistan will look to shift its focus to the shorter format with the T20 World Cup looming on the horizon

Pakistan’s track record in T20 World Cups has been quite impressive; the side made it to the summit clash of the tournament in 2022 after losing in the semi-final in 2021.

Pakistan Squad for NZ T20Is: Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Aamir Jamal, Abbas Afridi, Azam Khan (wicket-keeper), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (wicket-keeper), Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (vice-captain), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Usama Mir, and Zaman Khan