Wahab Riaz, Pakistan’s chief selector, has explained how both Azam Khan and Mohammad Rizwan could play together in the upcoming five-match T20I series between Pakistan and New Zealand.
Pakistan have named as many as three wicketkeepers in their squad for the five-match series. Apart from Mohammad Rizwan and Azam Khan, uncapped Haseebullah Khan is also a part of the squad. With the T20 World Cup less than six months away, the Pakistan team-management wants to have a good backup for Rizwan.
While Mohammad Rizwan is the first choice wicketkeeper, Azam Khan is still trying to become a regular in Pakistan’s T20I team. Son of former Pakistan wicketkeeper Moin Khan, Azam has played 5 T20Is so far and has scored only 7 runs. However, he has done well in domestic circuit as well as the Pakistan Super League and has impressed many with his hard-hitting skills.
Wahab Riaz on Mohammad Rizwan vs Azam Khan debate:
With Mohammad Rizwan being the first choice wicketkeeper, it is tough to see Azam Khan getting a chance in the playing eleven when the former is a part of the squad. However, Wahab Riaz has said that both Azam Khan and Rizwan can play against New Zealand. He stated that Rizwan could play as a specialist batsman while Azam could don the wicketkeeping gloves.
“Azam Khan will play as a wicketkeeper-batter against New Zealand. Mohammad Rizwan can play as a specialist batter,” Wahab Riaz told Geo News.
Azam Khan to play as wicket-keeper against 🇳🇿
Chief Selector Wahab Riaz makes it clear that Rizwan can play as a batter too✌️🇵🇰#PAKvsNZ #NZvsPAK #PakPassion #AzamKhan #MohammadRizwan pic.twitter.com/uDTbHGwPeS
— PakPassion.net (@PakPassion) January 7, 2024
Earlier while announcing the squad for the New Zealand series, Wahab had said: “We have watched Azam Khan very closely. At times, you have to prefer skills over fitness. If a player can win you a match, that’s more important than anything else. We’ve spoken to Azam Khan and given him a clear message – we want to invest in him, but he has to respond as well. You can’t expect anyone to lose ’10 kg in 10 days, but there is a way to improve fitness.
“We’ve seen he’s a high-impact player in PSL, domestic cricket, other leagues – we’ve tried many players at number so now we want to give Azam a chance,” he added.
Meanwhile, the PCB, on Monday (January 7), appointed Rizwan as the captain of Pakistan’s T20I team.
Pakistan squad:
Shaheen Shah Afridi (capt), Aamer Jamal, Abbas Afridi, Abrar Ahmed, Azam Khan, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Usama Mir, Zaman Khan
