LAHORE: After being stripped off his Test vice-captaincy following Pakistan’s dismal exit from the World Cup, wicket-keeper Moham­mad Rizwan was handed over the position for the Twenty20 International format on Monday.

Rizwan’s first assignment in the role will be of deputising newly-appoin­ted captain Shaheen Shah Afridi in Pakistan’s upco­ming five-match T20 series against New Zealand.

“It is an honour to be named as the vice-captain of Pakistan Men’s T20I side,” Rizwan was quoted as saying in a PCB press release on Monday. “I am thankful to the PCB for entrusting me with this responsibility. I am looking forward to working closely with the captain, coaching staff, and my team-mates to contribute to the team’s success.”

The 31-year-old has been out of the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) good books since Zaka Ashraf took charge of the body as its interim management committee chairman in July last year.

Reportedly, the bone of contention between Rizwan and the board was his refusal to advertise surrogate betting companies — a stand he shared with former skipper Babar Azam, who stepped down from the post after the World Cup and was replaced by Shan Masood in Tests and by Shaheen in T20s.

It had also emerged that Rizwan and Babar were represented by a powerful sports agent, whose apparently significant control over the team has irked Zaka over the past few months.

Rizwan’s appointment as Pakistan’s T20 vice-captain may have been made due to the injury absence of Shadab Khan, who had held the position previously.

Pakistan take on New Zealand in the first T20I on Jan. 12 in Auckland. The series will run until Jan. 21.

Published in Dawn, January 9th, 2024