I asked coach, Babar Azam to drop me and include Sarfaraz Ahmed in New Zealand Test series: Mohammad Rizwan

Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan revealed that the he had personally asked the management to drop him from the recently concluded Test series against New Zealand. Rizwan further added that, he asked the management to add the services of former skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed ahead of him in the squad.

Prior to the clash against the Kiwis at home, Rizwan endured a dismal outing against England as he only managed to get 141 runs at an average of 23.50 across the three-match series. In a conversation with Cricket Pakistan, the keeper-batter confessed that he did not ‘deserve’ a place in the side due to his underwhelming performances with the bat. Furthermore, he also suggested that the side should rope in Sarfaraz Ahmed as his replacement. 

“You can ask the head coach Saqlain Mushtaq that what I told him after the end of the England Test series. I was happy to see Sarfaraz (Ahmed)  perform because that is what I wanted. I personally thought that since I wasn’t able to perform, I didn’t deserve to play in the next series. Some players said that every player goes through this phase and you can’t sit on the bench based on few failures,” shared Rizwan.

Sarfaraz has been performing in domestic and deserves his chance now: Mohammad Rizwan

It is worth noting that, Sarfaraz carved out magnificent innings in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy as he got a century (102 runs) and 52 runs in the last two outings for Sindh prior to the New Zealand series. Rizwan further reiterated that courtesy of the domestic performances, the former Pakistan skipper deserved a place in the squad.

“Sarfaraz has been performing in domestic and deserves his chance now. So, I was happy to see Sarfaraz perform because I asked for his inclusion. Whoever performs best for Pakistan deserves to play,” he added.

The former Pakistan skipper relished a terrific outing against the BlackCaps as he hammered 335 runs at an incredible average of 83.75 in the two Tests and was the highest run-getter.