Darren Lehmann opens up on Mohammad Rizwan's omission from first Test

Legendary cricketer Darren Lehmann questioned the omission of wicketkeeper batter Mohammad Rizwan from Pakistan’s playing XI for the first Test against hosts Australia at Perth’s Optus Stadium.

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Pakistan included Sarfaraz Ahmed instead of Mohammad Rizwan as the wicketkeeper for the crucial first Test.

The veteran campaigner did not have a so-so day as he took two catches but missed a stumping opportunity against David Warner.

It proved to be a costly mistake as the Southpaw scored a century to put Australia in a strong position in the fixture.

At the end of the day, Mohammad Rizwan was spotted having a keeping session on the sidelines of the fixture. Darren Lehmann spoke about his exclusion from the side on social media.

A Twitter user shared a picture of Mohammad Rizwan. He stated that many Pakistan fans feel that he should have playing in the series opener.

In keeping with how these things go, the wicket-keeper that a lot of Pakistan feels should have been keeping wickets in Perth today, Muhammad Rizwan, has a keeping session at the end of the first day’s play #AusvPak pic.twitter.com/AkMWIhS9VR

— Bharat Sundaresan (@beastieboy07) December 14, 2023

Darren Lehman replied by saying, “Why is he not.”

Why is he not 🤷‍♂️

— Darren Lehmann (@darren_lehmann) December 14, 2023

It is pertinent to mention that Australia glided to 346-5 after 84 overs at stumps on day one of the series opener on the back of opener David Warner’s century.

The left-handed batter brushed aside any doubts with a brutal 164-run assault.

The 37-year-old, who intends to retire from tests after the third and final game in Sydney, combined with Usman Khawaja (41) in a 126-run opening stand to get the hosts off to a strong start after winning the toss.

A delightful uppercut for four in the 43rd over saw the Southpaw bring up a breezy 125-ball hundred, his 26th in tests, prompting a trademark celebratory leap and a cheeky ‘shush’ towards the media box.