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Mohammad Rizwan is likely to be dropped from the next match against the England National Cricket Team at Lord's. The decision to drop the senior keeper-batter is expected after Pakistan suffered an innings defeat by 103 runs at Headingley Carnegie in Leeds in the first match of the ongoing Test series.
The Pakistan cricket team is in England for a three-match Test series. They arrived in Leeds with high hopes ahead of the first match of the series, after defeating the West Indies in a Test match. The Men in Green got the reality check soon when Ollie Robinson and Josh Tongue picked five wickets each in the first innings of the first Test match and bundled Pakistan out for only 171 runs.
Why is the Pakistan cricket team likely to drop Mohammad Rizwan from the Lord's Test match?
Pakistan never recovered from the early setback in the match. Better to say, Pakistan was never able to match England's quality bowling spells with their batting. While they scored 171 runs in the first innings, in the second they got only 135 runs. Mohammad Rizwan was one of the most senior batters of the team who was required to stand tall in the middle to support the batting order.
Babar Azam was not a part of the Leeds Test because of an injury. So Rizwan needed to take extra responsibility. In the second innings of the match, when again the touring team was struggling against the home side's bowling, Mohammad Rizwan made a blunder.
Mohammad Rizwan exposed Pakistan's tail-ender against Ollie Robinson
Pakistan was seven wickets down when Khurram Shahzad walked into the ground to stitch a partnership with Rizwan. He was a well-set batter and their only hope of somehow surviving the match.
Mohammad Rizwan, who has played 45 Test matches ahead of the Leeds Test, took a single on the first ball of the 32nd over of the innings. Ollie Robinson was then firing on all cylinders with his pace bowling. In the following delivery, Robinson dismissed the tailender, Khurram Shahzad.
Nasser Hussain was furious with Mohammad Rizwan
Former cricketer Nasser Hussain blasted Rizwan for the dismissal of Khurram Shahzad. Highlighting Rizwan's Test experience, Hussain said that there was no logic behind taking the single, which only exposed the fresh batter against an in-form fast bowler.
"I don’t understand. Rizwan has played 46 Tests, the only batter out there, and exposing Shehzad to five balls from Robinson makes no sense," the former cricketer said.
If the latest reports are to be believed, the Pakistan team management is all set to drop Rizwan from the Lord's Test match, which will start on August 27. In place of the experienced batter, they are likely to field Ghazi Ghori as his replacement.
🚨 NO MUHAMMAD RIZWAN FOR LORD'S TEST 🚨
— Rayham. (@RayhamUnplugged) August 22, 2026
- Muhammad Rizwan is likely to be dropped from Pakistan's playing XI for the Lord's Test.
- Ghazi Ghori is likely to replace him in Pakistan's playing XI. (Ejaz Wasim Bakhri) pic.twitter.com/Z22XN29LAu
Ghazi Ghori is a 23-year-old keeper-batter from Karachi who has made his national team debut in the One Day International format but is yet to receive his debut Test cap. According to the latest reports, the emerging cricketer could get his Test cap at the iconic Lord's Cricket Ground.
