Pakistan on Monday, January 8 confirmed the appointment of Mohammad Rizwan as the vice-captain of their T20 international men’s team. Rizwan will be captain Shaheen Shah Afridi’s deputy from the upcoming 5-match series against New Zealand, starting January 12.

Fast bowler Shaheen Afridi was named the T20I captain after Babar Azam stepped down from his role as all-format captain following the team’s horror run in the ODI World Cup tournament in India. Afridi’s men landed in Auckland ahead of the series opener on Monday, January 8.

The move to have Shaheen Afridi and Mohammad Rizwan in their core leadership group is a big boost of confidence for the Pakistan side ahead of the T20 World Cup. Rizwan has been one of the mainstays of the T20I team, having played 85 T20Is for Pakistan and has scored 2797 runs, including a hundred and 25 fifties.

Despite having been one of the senior players in the side, Rizwan has not had the opportunity of leading the side, even as stand-in captain in T20I cricket. However, Rizwan was crucial to the team during Babar Azam’s stint as the captain of the side. Babar led the side in T20 World Cup 2021 and 2022 and they made the final in 2022, a year after losing in the semi-final in the UAE.

With Shaheen, a fast bowler, taking up the responsibility of captain, the appointment of Rizwan makes strategic sense, considering workload management for their star pacer.

Pakistan will begin their full-fledged preparation for the T20 World Cup with a 5-match series against New Zealand. They have named three wicketkeepers in Azam Khan, Haseebullah and Rizwan, who is likely to play as a frontline batter.

Pakistan Squad for NZ T20Is: Shaheen Shah Afridi (captain), Aamir Jamal, Abbas Afridi, Azam Khan (wicket-keeper), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (wicket-keeper), Iftikhar Ahmed, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (vice-captain), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Usama Mir and Zaman Khan

Full schedule

1st T20 – 12 January 2024 at Eden Park, Auckland

2nd T20 – 14 January 2024 at Seddon Park, Hamilton

3rd T20 – 17 January 2024 at University Oval, Dunedin

4th T20 – 19 January 2024 at Hagley Oval, Christchurch

5th T20 – 21 January 2024 at Hagley Oval, Christchurch

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