Good wicket-keeper batters take a lot of work to come by. In particular, Pakistan have not been lucky with this species for the longest time. Umar Akmal had almost as many slippery fingers as his brother Kamran Akmal did. Although Sarfaraz was a touch better with glovework and, for some time in his career, did well with the bat too, he still had his bad days and soon those bad days had started coming frequently. Mohammad Rizwan had been a different case. He started his career the way none before him did. But not in the way you think. He was downright horrendous during the start, especially in white-ball cricket. To be frank, if it were not for that series against New Zealand in 2020 where Rizwan proved his mettle, Pakistan would still have been on the hunt for a decent wicket-keeper. Rizwan has set the bar for wicket-keeping too high. On top of that, he has been Pakistan’s top-scorer since his renaissance.
In the recent match against Bangladesh, he erased all the doubts people had about him. After Pakistan’s home season in 2022, many were of the view that Sarfaraz Ahmed was a better replacement for him in Test matches. The 32-year-old batter had to even sit a few matches out as well. But Rizwan is nothing if not someone who likes to keep making comebacks in the face of challenges. He grabbed the opportunity when Sarfaraz was ousted with an injury during the recent Benaud-Qadir Trophy and did not look back. His trademark best was seen during the Australia tour at the start of this year.
On the first day of the first Test match against Bangladesh, the wicket-keeper batter once again showed why he can single-handedly run all the stumping batters out of business. Not only did he keep standing for his 239-ball-171 knock, which is the highest score by a wicket-keeper batter in WTC history, but after Shan Masood declared the innings, he came with a smile that is so characteristic of him, to keep teh wickets for another 10 overs before the close of play.
His one-handed worldie off a Naseem Shah delivery that helped Pakistan draw the first blood shows just how brilliant of a keeper he is. It’s not just the Test format. Currently, he averages over 40 in all three formats with the bat. For a few years now, he has been one of Pakistan’s most reliable players across formats, both with the bat and behind the wickets. Since his epochal comeback in 2020, only Alex Carey has more dismissals behind the wicket than Mohammad Rizwan. His numbers speak for him. His mits and bat silence the critics for him.
The way he stays on the field, he does not look like someone who is in their thirties. Being one of Pakistan’s fittest players, he is a beast when it comes to managing workload. But he is 32 now. The age when most cricketers slowly start packing their bags. Rizwan, on the other hand, does not seem too keen on bidding farewell to this game. Each day he reminds everyone (and more importantly himself) that there is a lot to be accomplished, a lot of records to be broken, and a lot of opportunities to show how much of a ‘keeper’ he is.
