PAK vs AUS: ‘Dismal 12-month record’ behind Rizwan’s omission from Australia ODIs, coach Hesson explains
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "PAK vs AUS: ‘Dismal 12-month record’ behind Rizwan’s omission from Australia ODIs, coach Hesson explains")
‘Dismal 12-month record’ behind Rizwan’s omission from Australia ODIs Hesson Photograph: (Others)
Pakistan head coach Mike Hesson delivers a brutal reality check, explaining why Mohammad Rizwan was dropped from the ODI squad against Australia.
In the last year, Pakistan has played 11 ODIs, losing nine and winning just two. Like before, a lot of shuffling took place. The PCB appointed a new head coach (Mike Hesson) and an ODI captain (Shaheen Shah Afridi) in the meantime, but results didn’t improve. The Men in Green also recently lost an away ODI series to Bangladesh (1-2) and needed a new-look squad for the three-match One-Dayers against Australia at home (starting this week) to revive any hopes. Who faced the axe? The experienced Mohammad Rizwan. Hesson explains the reasons behind overlooking the white-ball star.
Rizwan last featured in the ODI series against Bangladesh, scoring just 54 runs across three matches, averaging under 20 (19.33). His below-par performance first cost him the ODI captaincy and then his place in the One-Day side. With the next 50-over World Cup around 18 months away, Hesson said he wanted to try combinations and new faces to see who fits the final squad for next year’s showpiece event.
“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,” Hesson explained Rizwan’s absence from the Australia series.
Pakistan will host Australia for three 50-over games starting May 30 in Rawalpindi, and picked two wicketkeepers, Ghazi Gori and uncapped Rohail Nazir, with a combined experience of just one ODI.
Speaking of snatching away the ODI captaincy from Rizwan, Hesson explained that the poor run in the past 12 months and shallow personal and team performances forced selectors and the management to take action.
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“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,” he added.
Meanwhile, Rizwan had already exited the T20I setup even before Hesson took over as Pakistan’s new head coach.
