The leadership stint of the new white-ball captain for Pakistan, Mohammad Rizwan, has begun on a powerful note as they hammered the Australian side in the third and final game of the series at the Optus Stadium in Perth with eight wickets in hand, thanks to being able to chase the modest total of 143 runs with more than 23 overs to spare.
The leadership of Mohammad Rizwan was praiseworthy for the entire series as he used the bowlers brilliantly. The way he brought Haris Rauf in the middle overs with the best field placement and the accurate game plan against Glenn Maxwell worked in their favor. Their bowlers did a great job in the last two ODIs in Adelaide and Perth after almost defending the low score in Melbourne.
This is now the first ODI series victory for the Green Brigade in these conditions since 2002 and the second overall 50-over series against the Kangaroos in the last 26 years. The visiting side made the lightwork of the chase in the final game, thanks to their young and aggressive opening batter, Saim Ayub, killing the chase in the powerplay with a strong opening partnership with Abdullah Shafique.
Mohammad Rizwan acting as captain for Pakistan? Veteran spills the beans
At the end of the third contest, Mohammad Rizwan listed the victory as a special moment before remarking that the entire mood of Pakistan had changed with their performance. However, his statement on becoming just the captain for ‘toss and presentation’ has sparked a new point of discussion.
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“Special moment for me, the nation will be very happy today, we didn’t perform as per expectations in the last couple of years. I’m the captain only for the toss and presentations – everyone gives me suggestions on the field, the batting group, and the bowling group.” The veteran wicket-keeper batter expressed at the post-match presentation.
Just after the announcement of the Peshawar-born as the new leader of the Green Brigade and later the revelation of the white-ball squad for both their trips to Australia and Zimbabwe, the then-head coach of the side, Gary Kirsten, decided to step down from his position on an immediate effect because of not having any say on the selection of the players. This led to the board handing the responsibility to their Test head coach, Jason Gillespie, for the series down under.
“All the credit to the bowlers. Australia in Australia isn’t easy, the conditions suit their style of playing, but the bowlers were outstanding. Also, credit to the two openers, they made the chases easy. They (fans) don’t care a lot about the results, but the people back home are always behind us, and I want to dedicate this victory to them.” Mohammad Rizwan remarked at the post-match ceremony.
The 32-year-old, who has notched up 2162 runs in 69 innings at an average of over 40 with a strike rate of nearly 90, shouldering on 13 half-centuries and three centuries at a best score of unbeaten 131 runs, replaced Babar Azam for the captaincy after the latter resigned for personal reasons.
The chief contributor for Pakistan in the series was Haris Rauf, who finished with the most wickets (10) in the series at an average of 12 and a strike rate of 14.40. He thanked the practice in the net sessions and the perfect communications for the series win.
Mohammad Rizwan will now lead Pakistan for the upcoming three-match T20I series, starting on November 14, at the Gabba in Brisbane.