AUCKLAND: Pakistan batter Fakhar Zaman has suggested that resting the side’s regular T20 openers Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam will help the side test new players and prepare back-up for the future.

The duo’s position at the top of the order is a matter of debate since the past few months, among not only fans but in the national side’s team management circles as well.

With a number of impressive top-order batters coming through Pakistan’s domestic cricket system, Babar and Rizwan — who have partnered each other for more than 2700 runs in 56 T20Is after being — have their places under scrutiny.

The pair might be separated to test the likes of Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan and even Fakhar — originally an opener who had been coming down at number four in T20Is to accommodate Rizwan and Babar — at the top of the batting line-up in Pakistan’s five-match series against New Zealand, which starts on Friday.

While Pakistan chief selector Wahab Riaz — who included a number of new faces in the Pakistan squad for the away series — had already hinted at resting regular players to give playing time to the less experienced ones, Fakhar reiterated his stance on Wednesday.

“It’s not very easy to replace players like Babar and Rizwan,” Fakhar said during a press conference. “ […] but giving rest to them may help with preparing a back-up.“

The New Zealand series will mark the commencement of Pakistan’s build-up towards this year’s T20 World Cup, which is set to be held in the United States and the West Indies in June. The national side is scheduled to play a host of T20 matches before the showpiece.

“.. in the 15-20 matches before the World Cup we should give testing new players a chance, so that no new player has to play directly [in the World Cup],” said the flamboyant batter.

Fakhar said he was happy to play at number four for Pakistan, and that not playing as an opener, despite being established in the slot in domestic and franchise T20s and One-day Internationals, was “not a sacrifice” for him.

“The management and the captain want me to play lower down the order, which means they believe I can win matches from that position,” he said. “This is the national team and a lot of players want an opportunity. I feel lucky that I’m still in the team even though I don’t have a place as an opener.”

The T20Is against New Zealand will be pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi’s first assignment as the Pakistan captain in the format. The left-armer has won two Pakistan Super League (PSL) titles in a row for Lahore Qalandars.

Fakhar, Shaheen’s Qalandars team-mate, said the bowler had proved his mettle as the leader in the franchise scene and that he expected him to emulate his aggressive approach in the international arena as well.

“I’ve seen Shaheen groom himself as captain,” he said. “He proved a lot of people including myself wrong that he is not good enough as a captain.

“There’s a difference between leading a franchise and the Pakistan team, but he has great leadership qualities.”

Both Pakistan and New Zealand will be almost full strength through the course of the five matches, the last of which will be played on Jan. 21. Fakhar believed that it would bring competitiveness into the series, especially with the T20 World Cup on the horizon.“.. we are facing their main strength bowling for the first time,“ the Mardan-born southpaw said of New Zealand. “And we want that because this is the year of the World Cup, so we want to play against strong teams.

“… the big guns like Lockie Ferguson, Kane Williamson, they’re really good players, and we are looking forward to playing against them.”

Published in Dawn, January 11th, 2024