Mohammad Rizwan breaks silence on politics in Pakistan team, says 'same team has...'

Mohammad Rizwan denied rumours of politics and groupism within the team.© AFP

Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan addressed the media in Peshawar to discuss the team’s early exit from the T20 World Cup in the Americas. Pakistan were knocked out of the T20 World Cup in the group stage after losing to tournament hosts and debutants USA and arch-rivals India. The players were heavily criticised, with some former players demanding that the entire team be sent home. Rumours of groupism also circulated within the team, which had a negative impact on the mood in the dressing room.

While Rizwan admitted that while the criticism from fans was justified, he dismissed rumours of politics and groupism within the team, calling it “outside chatter”.

“People say that there are political problems within the team and differences. If there are differences, we have lost matches before. These are just external rumours. This same team has played finals, semi-finals, but it is true that we have not won any trophy,” Rizwan said at a press conference in Peshawar.

“The criticism the team is facing is justified and we deserve it as we have not lived up to expectations. Players who cannot take criticism will not be able to succeed. We are disappointed with our performance in the T20 World Cup. There are several reasons behind our defeats. When a team loses, you cannot say that the bowling and batting are doing well,” he added.

According to a report, the biggest challenge that Babar Azam faced upon his return as captain was to unite the team but he could not do so due to the regroupings.

Shaheen Afridi was upset at losing the captaincy and Babar not supporting him when needed, while Mohammad Rizwan was unhappy at not being considered for the captaincy.

However, several reliable sources have also confirmed that PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi will not take an immediate decision regarding Babar Azam’s captaincy as Pakistan now plays their next white-ball series in November.

(With PTI inputs)

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