Rizwan was left out to explore new options for World Cup, says Hesson

Pakistan will be without Mohammad Rizwan when they face Australia in a three-match ODI series, beginning in less than a week. 

Rizwan to miss an ODI game for the first time since 2022

Barring a one-off exclusion in 2022, when Rizwan was rested for the third ODI against the Netherlands, this marks the first time he has not been part of the ODI side since 2019. 

Since 2024, only he and Salman Ali Agha have maintained an omnipresence for Pakistan in ODIs. But head coach Mike Hesson says Rizwan's exclusion was a decision by the selection panel to allow them to explore other options.

"In terms of this series, you would have noticed in the Bangladesh One-Day series, we made a number of changes to bring in some new players, and Mohammad Rizwan was still in that squad. And coming into this series, we've made a couple of other changes," Hesson told reporters.

"Because in 18 months time we have a World Cup, so we need to look at the options we have from a working people's point of view, and that was something that the selection panel decided," he added.

In his stead, Pakistan have called two young wicketkeeper batters for the Australia series; Ghazi Ghori and Rohail Nazir. Of them, only Ghori is capped, having played one ODI game against Bangladesh earlier this year.

Hesson: Team had not performed under Rizwan

Rizwan was named Pakistan's ODI captain in the immediate aftermath of Babar Azam stepping down from white-ball captaincy. The wicketkeeper batter led the side in 20 games, winning nine, which Hesson cited as the reason behind his removal as captain in the format.

"By the time I arrived, Rizwan was not in the T20I squad; he certainly was not the captain. So, he has not been playing T20 cricket since I've been involved," Hesson stated.

"In terms of ODIs, yes, Mohammad Rizwan started as the captain in the West Indies, and we felt we needed a change at the end of that series because we had won two games in 12 months. So, the team had not performed.

"Sure, you look at two things: you look at individual numbers, and you look at how you can maximise the team's performance. So, we felt we wanted to make a change from the captaincy's point of view."

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