Senior Pakistani wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan has finally addressed the investigation by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA), stating that he is simply awaiting the conclusion of the investigation.
The 34-year-old also implied that after the investigation is finished, he might speak to the media. As per the Samaa TV report, Rizwan and Imam-ul-Haq are being investigated for allegedly leaking information from Pakistan’s dressing room and for issues about the team’s recent tour of England.
Following the defeat in the second Test at Lord’s, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) ordered seven players, including Rizwan and Imam, to return to Pakistan. Rizwan, a right-hander who returned with 61 runs in four innings, did not perform well in the first two Test matches.
Additionally, the agency is thoroughly searching both players’ mobile phone records. Rizwan and Imam had earlier appeared before the NCCIA in Lahore, where they were questioned for about two hours over the issues related to the England tour and the alleged dressing-room leaks.
Rizwan On Cybercrime Probe
“I am fully cooperating with the investigation. I am waiting for the investigation to be completed,” Rizwan told Samaa TV.
The agency was examining both players’ financial activities and conducting a search for any potential misconduct, according to an earlier Geo News story.
Rizwan And Imam Under Scanner After England Rout
A show-cause notice inquiring why Rizwan and Imam were chosen for Pakistan’s Test squads for the tours of the West Indies and England was given to the selection committee earlier, following the PCB’s decision to send the seven players back home from England. Rizwan’s results in the West Indies were as mediocre as he amassed only 41 runs over the course of the two Tests, with his top score of 18 in the second Test. But prior to the Windies tour, the right-hander enjoyed a stellar record as Pakistan’s top scorer since January 2024.
PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi justified the decision to replace seven players after Rizwan was returned home from England, stating, “We have had a discussion to ascertain the reasons behind it. They include factors beyond performance, and we will get to the bottom of it.”
Speaking of the Pakistani Test team, they were humiliated 0-3 by England. At the moment, the Babar Azam-led team is at the bottom of the World Test Championship (WTC) standings. In the first Test at Headingley, Pakistan lost by an innings and 103 runs, and in the subsequent two Tests at Lord’s and Edgbaston, the visitors lost by 194 runs and eight wickets, respectively.