Champions Trophy: Urooj Mumtaz Critiques Rizwan's Dot Ball Dilemma

Synopsis

Former Pakistan women’s cricket captain, Urooj Mumtaz, criticized skipper Mohammad Rizwan for his excessive dot balls during the middle overs, which played a pivotal role in their six-wicket defeat to India in the 2025 Champions Trophy in Dubai.

Key Takeaways

Rizwan's dot balls impacted match outcome.
Need for better strike rotation highlighted.
Pressure on Saud Shakeel due to slow scoring.
Rizwan's performance below expectations.
Importance of leadership in challenging situations.

New Delhi, Feb 24 (NationPress) Former captain of the Pakistan women’s team, Urooj Mumtaz, has pointed fingers at skipper Mohammad Rizwan for his excessive number of dot balls during the middle overs, which contributed to their six-wicket loss against India in the 2025 Champions Trophy held in Dubai.

Despite scoring 46 runs, making him the second-highest run-scorer for Pakistan, Rizwan took 77 balls to achieve that, resulting in 29 dot balls between the 11th and 24th overs. The slowdown in Pakistan's scoring began after the power-play, where they stood at 52/2, with an overall dot ball percentage of 48 percent.

“Rizwan continuously falls into the trap of consuming too many dot deliveries. He tends to play a release shot after a long wait. At one point, he was at 40 runs from almost 70 balls, where he seemed poised to hit another release shot,” Urooj mentioned in her comments to ESPNcricinfo.

Rizwan formed a 104-run partnership with Saud Shakeel, but this took a staggering 144 balls to materialize. Urooj added that Rizwan's slow approach placed undue pressure on Shakeel, who is not known for aggressive batting.

“In his innings of 46 off 77 balls, with a strike rate of 59, Rizwan's performance fell short of expectations. Given that the team’s top batter, Babar Azam, is struggling with form and was dismissed early, it was crucial for Rizwan as captain to step up and demonstrate a more courageous attitude. Better strike rotation was essential, and his failure to do so was a significant flaw, which likely increased the pressure on Saud as well,” she concluded.