Pakistan Test skipper Shan Masood has explained the team management’s decision to replace veteran wicket-keeper batter Sarfaraz Ahmed with Mohammad Rizwan in the forthcoming second Test against Australia in Melbourne after the team’s 360-runs loss to Australia in the 1st test.
Sarfaraz Ahmed was brought back into Pakistan’s Test team at the end of 2022 due to his good domestic performance. Mohammad Rizwan has only appeared as a concussion substitute in the second Test against Sri Lanka since Sarfaraz’s return to the red-ball format of the game, and he will play the must-win Boxing Day test against Australia beginning on Tuesday.
Shan Masood the media before the second test against Australia that Mohammad Rizwan is ready to go, but Sarfaraz Ahmed is taking his time to recover and rejoin the team. He also admitted that it was difficult for all batters to get going in Perth and that he hopes to do better in the next match.
“We think Rizwan is ready and we can give Sarfaraz a little bit of a break to recoup and come back, It’s more of a tactical decision in terms of the conditions and what we can get out of each player,” Shan Masood said.
“It was hard out there in Perth. But I still feel there were some positives that probably we didn’t do back when we were here in 2019. We don’t want to force people to play a certain way. But we’ve sort of outlined certain things that we want to do better,” Shan Masood added.
Sarfaraz Ahmed struggled in the Perth Test, scoring only seven runs in both innings and failing to cope with Mitchell Starc’s speed. Mohammad Rizwan has staked his claim for a Boxing Day Test comeback after impressing in a two-day practice match against Victoria.
Pakistan arrived in Melbourne a week before Boxing Day and has spent little time at the MCG. On the 21st, a training session was followed by a two-day practice game at the Junction Oval. Pakistan players rested on the 24th, while both sides were forced to exercise indoors owing to severe weather on Monday.
Pakistan XII: Imam-ul-Haq, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (capt), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan, Agha Salman, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Hasan Ali, Mir Hamza, Aamer Jamal, Sajid Khan
