Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq ruled out of domestic cricket

The veteran wicket-keeper batter, Mohammad Rizwan, and the opening batter, Imam-ul-Haq, of Pakistan could have been left out of domestic cricket after the troubling England series, where they were sent back home by their cricket board ahead of the third Test of the series at Edgbaston in Birmingham.

As per the reports, the duo have now been called up by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) over information reportedly being obtained from their mobile phones. Both the players are now set to be out of the first round of the President’s Trophy Grade-I after their failure in the fitness tests.

Why Rizwan and Imam-ul-Haq are missing domestic action — Full update

The PCB has decided to bring back the Kookaburra balls for their first-class system in the 2026-27 season as they will make a smooth shift from the Dukes ball in their domestic red-ball tournament. It will bring more challenge for the pacers, especially once the ball gets old.

Their left-arm premier pacer, Shaheen Afridi, is going to return to first-class cricket after being named in the Khan Research Laboratories. The pacer returns to KRL after nearly a decade following his memorable first-class debut when he picked up 8/39 in 15 overs during the second innings.

Rizwan and Imam have been dropped from their squads for the domestic cup due to their fitness tests. The board has made these mandatory for all players’ participation, while the duo didn’t participate in those fitness tests.

Imam-ul-Haq was named the leader of the OGDCL side, while Rizwan was the vice-captain of the SNGPL for their President’s Cup.

Inside the England tour leak investigation involving Rizwan and Imam-ul-Haq

Imam, as per the reports, was asked to unlock their mobile phone, which had been part of the investigation process as part of the probe into the alleged dressing-room leaks during the trip to the United Kingdom.

“The sources said the investigation will focus on alleged dressing-room leaks during Pakistan's ongoing series against England. A third Pakistan cricketer has also reportedly received a notice from the agency.” The report addressed.

Apart from those two players, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman, Owais Zafar, Khurram Shahzad, and Aamer Jamal are the five other players to be sent back home by the Pakistan board. They also sacked their head coach, Sarfaraz Ahmed, and their bowling coach, Umar Gul, and brought in Mike Hesson as the interim coach.