Hayden lauds ‘warrior’ Rizwan, who was in hospital the night before Pak-Aus match

Pakistan wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan played a sensational innings of 67 runs in a high-pressure semi-final against Australia in Dubai on Thursday.

A courageous effort from @iMRizwanPak against Australia 🤝#T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/Uz0xx8o4xU

— ICC (@ICC) November 12, 2021

Ahead of the semi-final, Rizwan’s availability for the big game against Australia was in doubt due to illness.

Thankfully for Pakistan, he was declared fit and made a massive impact after being put in to bat first by the opponents.

After the innings, Matthew Hayden revealed just how special a performance it was from Rizwan.

“Rizwan, you probably didn’t know was actually in hospital just a night ago suffering with some sort of lung condition. This is a warrior,” Hayden said.

“He has been brilliant through it (the campaign) and he’s got great courage, as has Babar. Fantastic tonight from him.”

Rizwan struggled initially to find his touch, but Babar Azam at the other end kept the scoreboard ticking. Soon, Rizwan got going after smacking Josh Hazlewood for a six in the fourth over.

Once Babar was dismissed, he ensured that he batted as deep into the innings as possible, keeping one end tight till the 18th over. Thanks to some fiery shots by Fakhar Zaman in the end, Pakistan set a target of 177 for Australia to chase down.

Playing in the first ICC semi-final of his career, Rizwan made his night even more memorable. En route his 67, he also became the first player in the history of the game to score 1,000 T20I runs in a calendar year.

1️⃣0️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ T20I runs in 2021

Well played @iMRizwanPak 👏👏#WeHaveWeWill #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/TKSOdJS2Bg

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) November 11, 2021

He also broke the record England’s Jos Buttler had just set for the most runs by a keeper in a Men’s T20 World Cup. Buttler, who broke Craig Kieswetter’s record from 2010 in this year’s edition, had scored 269 runs to his name before England crashed out last night in the semi-final.

Rizwan now has 281 and is only behind his fellow opener Babar Azam for most runs in this year’s T20 World Cup.

Fellow cricketers and people from the cricket fraternity took to their social media to praise the 29-year-old cricketer.

Can you imagine this guy played for his country today & gave his best.
He was in the hospital last two days.
Massive respect @iMRizwanPak .
Hero. pic.twitter.com/kdpYukcm5I

— Shoaib Akhtar (@shoaib100mph) November 11, 2021

U want to see a real hero,a lion .. here is rizwan,in hospital a day before the game and was superb today against aus. Salute ma man.. total respect..wat a guy..a real lion pic.twitter.com/qvi6UId253

— Kashif Abbasi (@Kashifabbasiary) November 11, 2021

Take a bow, @iMRizwanPak 👏🏻 👏🏻 Very well played innings! Thank you for your service to the country despite all odds – on the field and off. Lots of respect ✊🏼 #PAKvAUS

— Momina Mustehsan (@MominaMustehsan) November 11, 2021

What heroes are made of. #Rizwan pic.twitter.com/RMmEmMzuT8

— Ali Zafar (@AliZafarsays) November 11, 2021

Mohammad Rizwan in hospital the night before the match against Australia. He had developed a severe chest infection and spent 2 nights in the ICU #T20WorldCup #PAKvAUS pic.twitter.com/E7qbcxdJmg

— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) November 11, 2021

For me, Rizwan defined the spirit of Pakistan Cricket.

He was in ICU for 2 days but played today; hit on the face with a bouncer but went on to be the top scorer; kept the wickets with a vicious bruise on the face.

You showed the world why they can’t ignore Pakistan cricket! pic.twitter.com/CMSbWPQBzl

— Umar Saif (@umarsaif) November 11, 2021

Rizwan spent 2 days in hospital before the final due to chest infection pic.twitter.com/DHCSvG7fWg

— ٰImran Siddique (@imransiddique89) November 11, 2021

You are HERO
You are INSPIRATION
You are ROLE-MODEL
You are RIZWAN
You are PAKISTAN pic.twitter.com/io0dPRcgAr

— Shoaib Jatt (@Shoaib_Jatt) November 11, 2021

Rizwan spent two nights in ICU before this match https://t.co/m8FTIqdWUt

— Waseem Badami (@WaseemBadami) November 11, 2021

Meanwhile, Matthew Wade commended his batting partner Marcus Stoinis for the way he took on Haris Rauf in the 17th over and said that was indeed the turning point of the match. The slog overs also saw Hassan Ali dropping Wade off Shaheen Afridi in the 19th over, with the keeper-batter cracking the next three balls for sixes to seal their spot in the final.