WHEN Pakistan needed their champion, Mohammad Rizwan raised his hand. Punching, swiping and axe-cutting in the best tradition of Ijaz Ahmed, Rizwan extinguished New Zealand’s hopes and in the process said, “Hello, remember me?”

The national debate on Babar Azam’s batting overlooked one major detail, and that was the influence of Rizwan on Pakistan’s success in T20 cricket – as well as his effect on Babar.

Under the bright lights of Sydney, on a comfortably paced pitch, before a crowd packed with jubilant supporters, Pakistan waltzed into the final of this year’s T20 World Cup. Rizwan, Pakistan’s pocket rocket, led the charge to victory, quelling doubts about Pakistan’s top order. Those doubts won’t disappear with one performance, but when ‘The Rizwan and Babar Show’ is hitting its cues, Pakistan fans should always be ready to celebrate good times.

Rizwan is a perfectly orthodox batsman – that’s how he first caught the eye – but he has adapted his game to play unorthodox shots perfectly.

The surprise is how confident and consistent he is in this abstract stroke making. From the first ball of the Pakistan innings, Rizwan was after New Zealand, aggression oozing from every swing of his blade, batting like he had already scored a hundred. Perhaps twenty overs behind the stumps sets Rizwan up perfectly for an innings.

It was some turnaround from the dithering strokeplay of Pakistan’s last group game against Bangladesh, although Babar’s start was still a sharp contrast to Rizwan’s. The captain was dropped first ball by Devon Conway but that fortune and Rizwan’s assertiveness pulled Babar back into the zone. By the end of his innings, we saw the Babar of old, killing them softly, caressing his team towards victory.

Their hundred partnership displayed a familiar rhythm: Rizwan forcing the pace early on, and Babar picking up the rate as the innings progressed and Rizwan eased off. The pair ran aggressively, and much of that was Rizwan helping his leader get re-established. New Zealand were unable to contain the prods and dashes that maintained Pakistan’s momentum. This was a different opening partnership, aggressive in its run seeking, not one that was hanging in for a late charge.

Babar’s return to form was significant, but it didn’t settle the argument about his batting position. In recent times, Babar has scored most heavily in the middle overs and he did so again. But his stubborn streak is to be admired; without it he wouldn’t be the world class player that he is.

Cricket is a public examination of a sportsman’s mental state, and Babar’s personal struggles are captured in ultra high definition in front of an audience of billions. It takes some guts, some courage, some bloody mindedness, and no little skill to back yourself again and again when the world is calling for you to change what you do. Under the spotlight of billions you have to overcome your trials and tribulations.

As welcome as Babar’s rejuvenation was, it was equally welcome to see Muhammad Haris striding out to replace his captain. Incredible how one man has flipped the mood 180 degrees from anxiety to expectation when Pakistan’s opening partnership is broken. Haris rode his luck but never changed his attitude from the carefree positivity that has won admirers and influenced three successive games in Pakistan’s march to Melbourne.

With Babar and Rizwan gone, there was a moment, a brief glimmer of apprehension that Pakistan might still stumble even with wickets in hand and under a run a ball required. But Haris didn’t succumb to the nerves in the stadium, instead he powered up when others might have faded.

First, Haris stepped to leg and drove Lockie Ferguson’s yorker through a tight gap at extra cover. Next ball, he pulled New Zealand’s paceman emphatically over the square leg boundary for six. Ten runs that settled the match. The crowd erupted and Pakistan’s players and staff leapt for joy in the dugout. These moments of high pressure define cricketers.

It’s hard to say that New Zealand performed badly but they were never at their most intense. Pakistan’s bowlers were outstanding again, of course, with key wickets from Shaheen Shah Afridi, but New Zealand’s batsmen, other than Daryl Mitchell, were overcautious. They will look back with some regret at the risks they didn’t take, although scoring runs against this Pakistan attack is difficult especially when their fielding is also on form.

Perhaps New Zealand underestimated Pakistan’s batting? Kane Williamson believed that they had achieved a competitive total. But it never looked that way, and once Pakistan’s openers had taken control with determined intent during the powerplay, New Zealand bore the look of a team awaiting the gallows.

That isn’t how Pakistan look; they now expect to win. And with their openers finding form, this Pakistan team has all the capabilities to lift its second World Cup title. It was good to see Babar nearing his imperious form in a major tournament semi-final, but it was Mohammad Rizwan, the pocket rocket behind Babar’s throne, who pushed Pakistan one step closer to recreating history at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Published in Dawn, November 10th, 2022