KARACHI: The Pakistan Super League (PSL) team Multan Sultans' captain and Pakistan’s top wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan has said that he doesn’t believe in having good form and the only thing that matters to him is hard work and he continues to do that.
In an exclusive interview to Geo News on sidelines of Multan Sultans’ first training session in Karachi, the top-order batter spoke about Sultans start in PSL 8, his own batting and competition in Pakistan Super League.
“I don’t know what is meant by form, I am not interested in knowing it either. The only thing that I know and understand is hard work, and this is what I continue to do because you can achieve glory only through hard work,” said Rizwan.
“If you’re competing with another player, you should work harder than him, if you want to be on top then you should be working harder than everyone, and this is not limited to your playing field only, you need to be disciplined in your life off the field as well,” said the Pakistan team’s wicketkeeper.
He added that the change in his batting position – from middle-order to top-order – is the real reason behind transformation of his batting in last three years.
Replying to a question, Rizwan said that he still does the same shadow practice which went viral during T20 World Cup 2021.
“I do everything which can help me improve my game,” he said.
Rizwan said that he is respectful to all the players on field but at the same time he has challenged all his opponents. However, he emphasised on being humble to everyone.
“When you achieve anything, you shouldn’t act in arrogance, it is important to remain humble because this is something that our religion also teaches us,” he said.
“I remain humble, but if someone gets aggressive against me, then I can be equally aggressive at times,” he said.
Talking about Sultans' start in the Pakistan Super League, the captain said that he is happy with the way his team has played and being a captain he can’t ask for more.
Multan has won four out of five games in the tournament and they are on top of the table.
“What more can I ask from this team, a very good start, players are gelled well and they are doing more than what I demand from them,” he said.
“It is not that we have won all matches as one-sided game, all the games were nail-biting sans our game against Quetta where Ihsanullah created the difference with his unplayable bowling in one spell,” he said.
Rizwan said that it is not easy to control the nerves in crunch situation and when such situation arises he tries to act bravely and leave the results on Allah’s will.
“When Abbas was smashed for a six off no-ball to start the final over against Karachi Kings, I went to him and said that he can become hero if he manages to defend these runs,” Rizwan revealed.
He praised the competition level in PSL and said that all the teams are well-balanced and still any team can gather the momentum and turn the tables.
“This is why PSL is the top league in the world,” he said.
Sultans’ captain added that team is missing presence of Shahnawaz Dahani and prayed for his quick recovery.
“Dahani is a different character, he is never under pressure no matter what the situation is. We are in contact with him and in fact we spoke to him on video call ahead of our last game, I hope he gets well soon and returns with a bang,” Rizwan said.
The wicketkeeper-batter said that he targets goals in each tournament but he opted not to disclose his goals for the PSL 8.
“I keep my targets and goals to myself,” he concluded.
Rizwan-led Multan Sultans next play Karachi Kings at National Stadium on Sunday.
Faizan Lakhani Faizan Lakhani is Deputy Editor (Sports) at Geo News.