'PCB forced to choose Mohammad Rizwan as captain': Mudassar Nazar's shocking claim

Former Pakistan National Cricket Team batting all-rounder Mudassar Nazar has made a huge claim, saying that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) would be forced to choose star wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan as the new skipper of the team.

Recently, Babar Azam announced a shock resignation from white-ball captaincy. The resignation was a sudden one, but it was always on the cards because of the way the Men In Green performed under the leadership of Babar Azam.

Mohammad Rizwan, Shaheen Afridi, and 3 other contenders emerge for Pakistan captaincy

Following the ODI World Cup, Babar Azam was sacked as all-format captain with Shaheen Afridi getting T20I leadership and Shan Masood getting Test captaincy.

However, just after one series, Shaheen was sacked, and Babar was reappointed as T20I captain. He was also expected to take over the ODI captaincy but before Pakistan's first 50-over series since ODI World Cup 2023, Babar Azam stepped down from the role.

The top two contenders to take over the Pakistan white-ball captaincy are Mohammad Rizwan and Shaheen Afridi. However, according to the reports, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is also considering Saud Shakeel, Salman Ali Agha, and Fakhar Zaman for the role.

Right now, they don't have any choice left - Mudassar Nazar

Meanwhile, in an interaction with Cricket Pakistan, Mudassar Nazar said that the PCB doesn't have a lot of options to pick from.

He added that the PCB management, as well as players, are not happy with Mohammad Rizwan, but they will be forced to pick him as skipper because making a youngster the skipper would backfire.

"Right now, they don't have any choice left. They've tried everyone except Rizwan. They'll have to make Rizwan the captain. I don't think the inner circle and top management are very happy with Rizwan, but they’ll be forced to choose him.

"Otherwise, if they go for a younger player, it will turn into the same situation as with Babar Azam. It's better to make a senior player the captain and then groom someone under him. In my opinion, it would be better for Pakistan to make Rizwan the captain for all three formats," Mudassar Nazar said.

Young players were made captains and then removed, which led to groupings in the team - Mudassar Nazar

Mudassar Nazar further pinned the blame on rapid captaincy changes for the downfall of Pakistan cricket. He said that this has led to the groupism in the team, which is a major issue. Mudassar Nazar elaborated:

"The recent poor performances of the Pakistan team have a lot to do with the rapid changes in captaincy. Young players were made captains and then removed, which leads to groupings in the team. This isn’t just Pakistan’s problem."

Pakistan's next challenge is a three-match Test series against England National Cricket Team, which will begin on October 7.

Shan Masood would be looking forward to winning his first Test as captain in the series against England as the defeats against the Three Lions could also lead to his sacking from the role.