Muhammad Rizwan named Pakistan's white-ball captain, replacing Babar Azam
Lahore, Oct 27: Wicketkeeper-batter Muhammad Rizwan was on Sunday named Pakistan's ODI and T20 captain, replacing Babar Azam, as the selectors announced the squads for the white-ball tours of Australia and Zimbabwe beginning November 4.
Salman Ali Agha was made vice-captain for all future ODI and T20 international assignments.
Pakistan will play three ODIs and as many T20Is in their Australia tour, beginning with the first match in Melbourne (ODI) on November 4, and that will be Rizwan's first assignment as captain.
Agha will lead the T20I side in Zimbabwe as Rizwan is rested under a workload management plan, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said in a statement.
Pakistan's tour of Zimbabwe -- for three ODIs and three T20Is -- is from November 24 to December 5. The first match -- an ODI -- will be played in Bulawayo.
Babar, pacers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah returned to the Pakistan team for the Australia tour after being sidelined for two Tests against England. However, they have been rested for the Zimbabwe tour.
The PCB first announced the squads for the two white-ball tours before Rizwan was named the skipper for the ODI and T20I assignments in Australia, as well as the 50-over contest in Zimbabwe.
Many new faces have been brought into the squads, while senior players like Fakhar Zaman and Shadab Khan missed out on selection.
Fakhar is facing an inquiry from the Pakistan Cricket Board for tweeting in support of Babar before the selectors dropped him for the England Tests.
In some bold steps, the selectors have decided to use the ODIs and T20Is in Zimbabwe to test new players.
PCB Chief Mohsin Naqvi told a media conference here on Sunday that Babar "didn’t want to be captain" and "no one forced him to resign as captain".
“Babar is an asset. He spoke to me and he told me he didn’t want to be captain and let me make it clear that no one forced him to resign as captain. It is his own personal decision. He had sought advice before resigning. He wants to focus on his batting,” Naqvi said.
“After Babar’s decision I spoke to all selectors and five mentors and discussed the issue and everyone felt unanimously that Rizwan should be made captain in white ball with Salman Ali Agha as his vice captain."
He also said that Aaqib Javed is presently convenor of all selection committee meetings.
“We have not announced a chief selector but he is convening the meetings and I am grateful to them for the hard work they have put in to turn around the fortunes of the team.”
The 32-year-old Rizwan, who debuted in white-ball cricket in 2015, has played in 74 ODIs and 102 T20Is till date, scoring 5,401 runs with four centuries and accounting for 143 dismissals behind the stumps.
When he leads the team in the opening ODI against Australia in Melbourne on November 4, Rizwan will become Pakistan’s 31st captain.
In the first T20I in Brisbane on November 14, he will be the 12th to captain Pakistan in the format.
“I am deeply honoured to be appointed as Pakistan’s white-ball captain. Representing Pakistan on the global stage is the greatest privilege and to now be entrusted with leading such a talented and exciting group of players is a tremendous honour," Rizwan said in the PCB statement.
"Joining the ranks of some of Pakistan’s legendary limited-overs captains truly is the icing on the cake."
He said he is committed to giving his "absolute best" in the new role and look forward to working closely with the selectors, coaches and "the immensely talented teammates".
“Pakistan cricket holds immense potential across all formats ... we will build on our recent success against England to achieve even greater heights in what promises to be a challenging and busy season of white-ball cricket.”
Naqvi said he is optimistic that under Rizwan's leadership, Pakistan’s white-ball cricket team will once again become a force to be reckoned with on the international stage.
"I am confident that Rizwan’s leadership qualities, underpinned by his deep commitment and passion for the game, will help shape this talented team into a consistently successful unit."
Pakistan squads for Australia and Zimbabwe tours:
ODI squad for Australia tour: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Salman Ali Agha (vice-captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (WK), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi.
T20I squad for Australia tour: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Salman Ali Agha (vice-captain), Arafat Minhas, Babar Azam, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (WK), Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Naseem Shah, Omair Bin Yousuf, Sahibzada Farhan, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Sufyan Moqim, Usman Khan.
ODI squad for Zimbabwe tour: Mohammad Rizwan (captain), Salman Ali Agha (vice-captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Ahmed Daniyal, Faisal Akram, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (WK), Kamran Ghulam, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Saim Ayub, Shahnawaz Dahani and Tayyab Tahir.
T20I squad for Zimbabwe tour: Salman Ali Agha (captain), Ahmed Daniyal, Arafat Minhas, Haris Rauf, Haseebullah (WK), Jahandad Khan, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Hasnain, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Omair bin Yousuf, Qasim Akram, Sahibzada Farhan, Sufyan Moqim, Tayyab Tahir and Usman Khan.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
SHO, others booked on murder charge after man dies in police custody in Lucknow
Lucknow, Oct 27: Police on Sunday lodged an FIR on charges of murder and criminal conspiracy against the SHO of Chinhat police station here and others after the family of a 30-year-old man, who died in police custody, alleged that he was beaten to death by the cops, officials said.
The incident evoked a strong reaction from the opposition parties, with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav saying "the term police custody" should be changed to "torture house", while senior Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra alleged that the "BJP has established such a jungle raj in the state where police have become synonymous with brutality".
A resident of Jainabad in the Chinhat area here, Mohit Kumar was arrested in connection with a case on Saturday. He died at a hospital while in custody following which his family members alleged police brutality as the cause of his death, police said.
Taking note of the complaint lodged by the victim's mother, an FIR under sections 103 (1) (Punishment for murder) and 61 (2) (criminal conspiracy) of the BNS has been registered against inspector Ashwani Chaturvedi, Station House Officer at the Chinhat police station, and others including some unidentified persons, Additional Commissioner of Police Vibhuti Khand Radha Ram Singh told reporters on Sunday.
A detailed probe is on into the matter, he said.
The exact cause of death will be ascertained after the post-mortem which will be videographed, the officer added.
A CCTV clip went viral on social media purportedly showing the victim lying in the lockup. The family members of the deceased accused the police of deliberately leaking only a small portion of the footage to save their back, claiming that Kumar was beaten to death by the cops.
According to the police, Kumar was rushed to a community health centre after he became unwell at the police station. From there he was referred to a bigger facility where he died, they said.
However, Shobharam, the victim's brother who claimed he was also taken into custody before being released later, alleged that the police mercilessly thrashed Kumar in front of him and sent him to the hospital only after he died.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Sunday slammed the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh over the incident.
"This is the second news of death (read murder') in police custody in the last 16 days in the Uttar Pradesh capital. The government, which is an expert in changing names, should now change the name of 'police custody' to 'torture house'. Every demand of the victim's family must be met. We are with them," Yadav said in a post on X.
Reacting to the incident, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in a post on X in Hindi, said, "In Lucknow, UP, the police detained two youths and one died the next morning. This is the second death in UP police custody in a fortnight. The family alleges that the police murdered their son."
"Uttar Pradesh ranks first in the country in terms of deaths in custody. The BJP has established such a jungle raj in the state where police have become synonymous with brutality. Where the lawkeepers themselves are taking lives. From whom should the public expect justice? " she said
Earlier, a 24-year-old man died in police custody after being arrested during a raid on a gambling den in Lucknow.
While Aman Gautam's family had accused the cops of beating him to death, police denied the allegations.
According to officials, a team of police personnel conducted a raid on Ambedkar Park in Sector 8 of Vikasnagar on October 11 night following reports of gambling activities.
"Two individuals, including Aman Gautam (24), were apprehended and taken into custody," Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (ADCP) Jitendra Kumar Dubey had said on October 12.
"While being transported to the police station, Aman's condition deteriorated, and he was rushed to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead upon arrival," the officer added.
Aman died due to police beatings, his family has alleged.
Meanwhile, spokesperson of the UP Congress Uma Shankar Pandey said, "The brutal murder of businessman Mohit Kumar in the lockup of Chinhat police station in Lucknow is extremely serious and infuriating."
"The family members are saying that the police have committed the murder under pressure from the ruling party," he claimed.
