Azhar Ali wants Mohammad Rizwan in Pakistan's T20 World Cup 2026 squad

Former Pakistan captain Azhar Ali has criticised the national T20 World Cup squad selection, arguing that Mohammad Rizwan should have been included.

Speaking during the T20 World Cup special transmission, Azhar Ali said Rizwan was reportedly dropped due to a lower strike rate and not rotating the strike effectively.

However, he contended that Rizwan remains a stronger option than Khawaja Nafay. He added that Khawaja Nafay has the potential but his stats are not that much strong.

“Mohammad Rizwan’s strike rate and experience surpass the other keepers. If a replacement is needed, Mohammad Rizwan should be the first choice,” Azhar Ali stated.

The former opening batsman of Pakistan said that conditions in Sri Lanka and India, support Mohammad Rizwan, where he can be fixed at 5 or 6 number in the team. “It seems the decision has already been made to keep Rizwan out of the team, which I disagree with,” he added.

On Wednesday, Pakistan Super League franchise Rawalpindi (ex-Multan Sultans)  secured the services of Mohammad Rizwan, Sam Billings, Zaman Khan and Yasir Khan across different categories.

Wicket-keeper batsman, Mohammad Rizwan was signed in the Platinum category for Rs56 million, while England’s Billings was picked in the Diamond category for PKR 30.8 million.