There is no hate between me and Mohammad Rizwan: Sarfaraz Ahmed

Mohammad Rizwan took over Pakistan's wicketkeeping after Sarfaraz Ahmed went out of favour. The 31-year-old Rizwan showed his class in all three formats of the game, especially in T20Is where he averages 49.07 and has scored 25 fifties and a solitary century.

Sarfaraz, however, worked hard, got fitter, and made his way back into the side for the Test series against New Zealand in December 2022-January 2023. The ICC Champions Trophy-winning captain had an exceptional comeback as he won the Player of the Series award for scoring the most number of runs.

There has been widespread debate in recent times over who should be the first-choice gloveman for the 'Men in Green'. When asked about the relationship between him and Rizwan, Sarfaraz cleared the air by stating that there is no animosity between the two and lambasted social media users who try to initiate rifts. The 36-year-old also praised the unity in the Pakistan team.

"The current Pakistan team is very well united. All the players share a brotherly bond and there is no hate between us," Sarfaraz was quoted as saying by Cricket Pakistan.

"There is no hate between me and Rizwan. The hate is just among the people on social media. These people have nothing to do in their life; hence they come to social media and start writing unnecessary things."

Interestingly, Sarfaraz started in the playing XI ahead of Rizwan during Pakistan's 2-0 series win against Sri Lanka.

"Just leave Babar Azam' - Sarfaraz Ahmed Virat-Babars comparison

Sarfaraz did not get get into the Babar Azam versus Virat Kohli debate as he felt that the Pakistan captain should be allowed to enjoy himself. Sarfaraz pointed out that Babar started his career much later than Virat and it won't be fair to compare the two players at this point in time. However, he did mention that nobody plays the cover drive and on drive better than Babar.

"Just leave Babar Azam. There is no comparison between him and Virat. Virat has been playing cricket for the last 14-15 years. Babar made his debut in 2015. Wait and watch Babar till he plays as much cricket as Virat; he will stand at the same stage. No one plays cover drive and on drive better than Babar. Just let him play and enjoy," Sarfaraz said.