After the Pakistan team’s early exit from the T20 World Cup, reports of players being fined have intensified discussions in the cricket world. Amidst this, Pakistani wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan has reacted to the issue for the first time. He stated that it would not be appropriate to comment on the matter until an official announcement is made by the board.
Rizwan’s Reaction
When media questioned Pakistan team’s wicketkeeper-batsman Mohammad Rizwan, who arrived in Bangladesh for the upcoming ODI series, about the alleged fines imposed on players, he responded cautiously. Media reports claim that after a poor performance in the T20 World Cup, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has fined all players of the team 50 lakh Pakistani rupees (approximately 18 thousand US dollars). However, Rizwan states that no official information has yet come from the board in this regard.
He informed that many people have questioned him on this issue, but he does not consider it appropriate to comment until a formal announcement is made by the PCB. According to him, if players have indeed been fined 50 lakh rupees, then it should be officially confirmed. Currently, these are just media reports, so he will express his opinion only after an official statement is released.
According to media reports, this fine was imposed after the match where Pakistan suffered a 61-run defeat at the hands of India in the group stage. This match was played at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. It is reported that after this loss, the team management told the players that if Pakistan qualified for the semi-finals, this fine would be waived. However, this did not happen, as the team could not register a win by the necessary margin against Sri Lanka and was eliminated from the tournament.
Rizwan Doesn’t Watch India’s Matches
Earlier, Mohammad Rizwan had also reacted to the team’s early exit from the tournament. He stated that Pakistan was eliminated not due to poor play, but due to net run rate. He said that the team was knocked out due to net run rate calculations, not by losing direct matches.
When asked about India’s seven-run victory over England in the ICC World Cup 2026 semi-final, Rizwan explicitly stated that he does not watch India’s matches. He briefly replied, “Sorry, I don’t watch their matches.”
Pakistan Team Arrives in Bangladesh
Meanwhile, the Pakistan team has arrived in Dhaka for the upcoming ODI series against Bangladesh. This series between the two teams is scheduled to start on March 11. Due to recent poor form, selectors had dropped star batsman Babar Azam and young player Saim Ayub from the ODI squad. Now, all eyes will be on how Pakistan performs in this series against Bangladesh. It will also be interesting to see if the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) makes any official announcement regarding the alleged fines imposed on the players.
