Are Pakistan done with Mohammad Rizwan in white-ball cricket?

Only two players have been part of all 20 ODIs the Pakistan national cricket team has played since the start of last year: Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha. Both players also top Pakistan’s run-scoring charts in the format during that period. But while one has been named the side’s vice-captain, the other could not even secure a spot in the squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series against Australia men's national cricket team.

What went wrong for Rizwan?

Mohammad Rizwan has averaged 42.42 in ODIs since the start of 2024, the second-highest for Pakistan after Salman. So what has suddenly pushed him out of favour with the selectors? Are Pakistan once again mixing formats and judging the ODI version of Rizwan based on his poor T20I form?

The squad for the Australia series also does not include Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, and Usman Khan. While there can be debates around their ODI form specifically, Mike Hesson appeared flexible about their return once they recover from injuries and illness. The same leniency, however, has hardly been visible in Rizwan’s case.

Can Pakistan afford to remove Rizwan?

Hesson has repeatedly spoken about building a complete side ahead of the ODI World Cup. Pakistan’s squad for the Australia series includes two young wicketkeeper-batters, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori and Rohail Nazir. Both have respectable List A records and could eventually become Pakistan’s long-term wicketkeeping options. But has that transition really become necessary already?

Sources suggest Rizwan is currently not part of Pakistan’s ODI World Cup plans. If that is indeed the case, Pakistan now have around a year and a half to develop a wicketkeeper-batter capable of handling the pressure of a World Cup campaign.

That makes Rizwan’s exclusion feel significantly questionable, even by Pakistan cricket’s standards.

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