Mohammad Rizwan was embarrassed in Australia as he was retired out by the Melbourne Renegades during the Big Bash League (BBL) match against the Sydney Thunder.
Rizwan struggled to get quick runs as the innings approached the end, and could only muster 26 in 23 balls, including two boundaries and a six, before being called back by the Renegades. He even faced most of the deliveries in the power surge, but couldn’t provide any momentum to his innings. He became the first overseas player in the BBL to be retired out.
Rizwan has been poor in the ongoing BBL, scoring 167 runs in eight matches at a strike rate of just above the 100 run mark. He was one of the high-profile overseas signings in the BBL, but so far has been below par, to say the least. In fact, the six he hit during his stay at the crease was his first in the tournament.
T20 World Cup Hopes Tank After BBL Disaster
BBL was a great opportunity for Mohammad Rizwan to make a case for the Pakistan T20 World Cup squad, but his recent performances have not been good enough to draw the attention of the Pakistan selectors. The PCB probably want one of or Mohammad Rizwan in the T20 World Cup squad, but both players have not shown any promise. Babar too has been mediocre, scoring just 154 runs in eight games for the Sydney Sixers, including two fifties.
Both Babar and Rizwan were left out of the Pakistan team after the T20 World Cup 2024, but the fresh faces failed to change the fortunes of the team as Pakistan suffered a series of defeats. After three losses to India in the Asia Cup 2025, the PCB was forced to bring Babar Azam back into the reckoning. It’ll be interesting to see if the PCB pick any of the two stalwarts for the World Cup despite low returns in the BBL.