Failures at Champions Trophy & NZ series already out of Rizwan’s mind, PAK captain eyes a better PSL

The year 2025 has been a forgettable one for Pakistan cricket. They failed to win a two-game Test series against the West Indies at home before an ordinary tri-nation series against New Zealand and South Africa. What followed was a horrible ICC Champions Trophy campaign, where Pakistan failed to win a single game despite being the official hosts. Now, to put salt on wounds, New Zealand has demolished them at home with 4-1 and 3-0 bilateral series wins in T20Is and ODIs, respectively.

Pakistan captain Muhammad Rizwan has now come up with thoughts following these humbling defeats. Fascinatingly, Rizwan has already put behind the mega loss at the Champions Trophy. In fact, he’s looking forward to what’s next – the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2025.

“After the Champions Trophy and this series, we’ll leave the past,” he said after the defeat in the third ODI loss vs New Zealand. “PSL is a big tournament for us in Pakistan, hopefully, our nation will enjoy it. Hopefully, we’ll do well in PSL.”

Rizwan claimed that the PSL is a massive tournament back in Pakistan. PSL 2025 will be the tenth edition of the competition, with Rizwan representing Multan Sultans.

Pakistan humbled by New Zealand

Pakistan’s batting unit still has a lot to work on, as evident from their recent series loss to New Zealand. Despite Babar Azam’s impressive performances, including two fifties, the team struggled to put up a strong show. On a positive note, young spinner Sufiyan Muqeem’s bowling and Naseem Shah’s all-round efforts were some bright spots.

However, New Zealand’s disciplined performance, led by Ben Sears’ impressive five-wicket hauls in consecutive matches, proved too much for Pakistan to handle. The Black Caps’ depth and adaptability were on full display, with young talents like Jacob Duffy and Rhys Mariu making a strong impression.

“I give credit to New Zealand in all departments. They’ve been playing well. We know that these are difficult conditions for us here but they played in Pakistan really well. They played against us in Pakistan. There are professionals in all departments. We need to improve, that’s it.”