Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan has signed an agreement with Sussex for the County Championship and T20 cricket for the 2022 season. Rizwan will arrive in England after the conclusion of Australia’s tour to Pakistan on April 5 next year and will be available for the majority of the County Championship season and the T20 matches. He will open the batting alongside Luke Wright, replacing Phil Salt – who has left for Lancashire. After signing the agreement, Rizwan said, “I am absolutely honored and excited to be a part of the historic Sussex County Cricket Club for the 2022 season.

I have always heard great things about the Sussex community and this family club was always close to my heart.” “In my heart, I know our young team has the potential to beat any team. Our strength lies in our hard work, honesty, deep commitment, and self-belief: we can win, we will win, and we will play like champions, no matter what! I look forward to a great season.” Ian Salisbury, Sussex’s ODI coach said, “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t really disappointed to learn we’d be losing a player of Ben Brown’s quality.

Now that has happened, though, we have to look forward and I’m delighted that we’ve been able to act quickly over the last week or so to secure the services of one of the world’s best keeper-batters as a replacement. Rizwan’s first-class and Test records speak for themselves and it’s a huge coup to welcome him to Sussex for a big chunk of next season.” Pakistan beat the West Indies by seven wickets in the third and final Twenty20 international in Karachi on Thursday, sweeping the series 3-0. Mohammad Rizwan scored 87 and skipper Babar Azam hit 79 as Pakistan achieved their highest run-chase in all T20Is by reaching the 208-run target in 18.5 overs.

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Pakistan vs West Indies ODI Series Postponed to 2022

Babar and Rizwan, who put on 158 for the opening wicket, registered their sixth-century stand in T20Is — all this year. It is the most by any pair in the shortest format. West Indies skipper Nicholas Pooran struck a rapid 37-ball 64 to lead the tourists to 207-3 in their 20 overs after they won the toss and opted to bat. Pakistan won the first match by 63 runs and the second by nine runs, also played in Karachi. Scores: West Indies 207-3 in 20 overs; Pakistan 208-3 in 18.5 overs. James Kirtley, Sussex’s T20 head coach, is also elated with the news.

“Rizwan’s averages around 40 in all formats at an impressive strike rate. Couple this with his ability to keep wicket and he is one of the most exciting cricketers in the world. He will be an excellent replacement at the top of the order and with the gloves in our Blast team and I am extremely pleased to be filling that gap with an international player of his caliber,” he added. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has released a joint statement alongside Cricket West Indies (CWI) regarding the five more COVID-19 positive cases in the West Indies camp.

Following Wednesday’s PCR testing, the total number of COVID-19 positive cases has increased to nine in the visitor’s camp since their arrival in Karachi on December 9. In the statement, PCB stated that the ODI series between Pakistan and West Indies which was scheduled to play after the T20I series has been postponed and rescheduled for early June 2022 “On Thursday morning and as part of the PCB COVID-19 Protocols, Rapid Antigen tests were conducted on the remaining 15 West Indies players and six-player support personnel. All 21 members of the West Indies touring party returned negative test results. As such, Thursday’s T20 International (T20I) proceeded as planned,” the statement reads.

“However, taking into consideration both the teams’ welfare as well as limited resources in the West Indies side for the ODIs, it has been agreed that the series, which forms part of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League, will be postponed and rescheduled for early June 2022,” it added.