The drama and controversies surrounding Pakistan cricket just keep coming. Recent reports from Pakistani media reveal that ODI captain Mohammad Rizwan chose to play club cricket instead of taking part in the National T20 Cup organized by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). This decision has sparked a lot of criticism. Former Pakistan fast bowler Sikander Bakht has also weighed in, urging PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi to take a firmer stance and revoke Rizwan's central contract.

Rizwan is already facing backlash following Pakistan's disappointing exit from the ICC Men's Champions Trophy, where they didn't make it past the group stage. As a result, he was dropped from the T20I team and is currently not part of the squad for the ongoing five-match T20I series against New Zealand.

After Pakistan's defeat in the second T20I against New Zealand on Tuesday, Sikander Bakht expressed that centrally-contracted players are essentially "employees" of the PCB and should be available for all tournaments organized by the board.

He called on Mohsin Naqvi to adopt a stricter approach and impose tougher penalties on those who don't comply.

"They are employees of the Pakistan Cricket Board, earning 60 lakh a month, so they should participate in the tournaments the PCB sets up. The responsibility lies with the PCB to ensure player availability. If someone is playing club cricket instead of participating in a PCB-organized tournament, it’s a disrespect to the board," Bakht stated during an interview with Geo Super.

"This kind of behavior shouldn't be tolerated. Mohsin Naqvi needs to toughen up. While he may seem polite, it's time for him to change his approach. We need to question what's going on. Be strict and consider stopping their central contracts," he added.

What was Rizwan's performance like in the Champions Trophy?

In the Champions Trophy, Rizwan's leadership didn't quite hit the mark. His batting performances were also lackluster, with scores of 3 and 46 against New Zealand and India, totaling just 49 runs across the two games he played.

Many analysts took a closer look at his 46-run innings against India, pointing out that he failed to keep up the pace during the middle overs.

Rizwan had previously stepped into the ODI captaincy role after Babar Azam. Under his leadership, Pakistan managed to clinch an ODI series against Australia in November 2024.

However, things have taken a turn for the worse since then. Pakistan bowler Sarfaraz Nawaz even commented on Rizwan's body language during the Champions Trophy match against India.

“There’s no denying that India is ahead of Pakistan. When I saw the toss, the reaction from the Pakistan captain (Mohammad Rizwan) seemed off. He looked a bit lost. I’m not sure if it was the pressure, but he didn’t seem like his usual self,” Nawaz shared with Cricbuzz.

“Unlike in other games, he was unusually quiet and not his usual talkative self. I’m not sure what went wrong. Pakistan's selection was really poor,” he added.

Read Also: AB de Villiers on Virat Kohli: 'Outside Noise Influences His Game'

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