Mohammad Rizwan predicted his Man of the Match award ahead of the semi-finals clash against New Zealand

Pakistan defeated New Zealand by seven wickets to become the first team to reach the finals of the 20-20 World Cup 2022. Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan put on an excellent display at the Sydney Cricket Ground to take the team through.

Before important games, Rizwan sends a note to his agent, friend, and mentor Talha Ramani. Usually about how many runs he’ll score or whether Pakistan will win. ‘MoM, today,’ (Man of the Match) he wrote on WhatsApp before the semi-final against New Zealand. That’s what he ended up with for his match-winning 43-ball 57.

He sent me a picture of something he wrote on a paper: Talha Rehmani

Misbah-ul-Haq, his then-coach, had made him open in T20s during a T20 series in New Zealand, but he failed twice. Everything hinged on the final T20. Even Misbah couldn’t have saved him from the axe if he had failed. The selectors may have relied on Sarfraz Ahmed, the former captain and wicketkeeper who led them to the famous Champions Trophy victory.

“You know what he did?” his agent and mentor Talha Rehmani told The Indian Express.

“He sent me a picture of something he wrote on a paper. It read: 76 not out. Man of the match. The 76 was crossed out and he had written on the side, ‘Allah, apni shaan ke mutaabiq de de! (Allah, you give according to your Greatness!) Rizwan made 89 that game, and hasn’t looked back since. That was probably his last chance, not just as an opener but possibly as a player in the white-ball format. And he has this strange confidence, moved by faith in his own skill, hard work and God. It’s a combination that has stood by him through all his lows in life.”

As for the game, Pakistan restricted the Blackcaps to a score of just 152 runs. Only Daryll Mitchell could do some damage to the Pakistani bowlers, while Kane Williamson held the innings together. In the chase, Babar Azam and Rizwan each scored a half-century to guide the team through the finish line.