Imam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Rizwan Ruled Out of President’s Trophy
Pakistan stars Imam-ul-Haq and Mohammad Rizwan have been ruled out of the President’s Trophy Grade-I as a deepening probe into alleged dressing-room leaks drags Pakistan cricket into uncomfortable territory.
The first-class tournament begins on Saturday across four venues, but two of the country’s most prominent names will be watching from the sidelines on the instructions of investigators and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), not selectors.
Cyber crime probe halts domestic returns
The National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency (NCCIA) questioned Imam and Rizwan in Lahore on Thursday after a PCB complaint over suspected leaks of information from the national team dressing room during Pakistan’s recent Test tour of England.
Both players had already been recalled from that tour, part of a group of seven removed from the squad after defeats in the first two Tests of the three-match series. Five were dropped purely on cricketing grounds. Imam and Rizwan were placed in a different category: the PCB confirmed an internal investigation was under way into their conduct.
That process has now spilled over into the domestic game. According to Dawn, the pair have been barred from taking part in the President’s Trophy until the investigation is completed.
The pressure on Imam intensified when national selector and PCB director of high performance Aaqib Javed publicly confirmed that the opener would also face scrutiny for his failure to bat in either innings of the second Test at Lord’s, a match Pakistan lost by 194 runs.
Four-hour grilling and phones in custody
A Dawn source said Imam and Rizwan were summoned to the NCCIA office in Lahore and questioned for around four hours. During the session, the players told investigators that their mobile phones were already in the agency’s possession and could be sent for forensic examination.
They also requested extra time to file written explanations – a sign that this is no brief formality but a case that may run for some time.
For Pakistan cricket, the optics are stark: two central figures in the Test and white-ball set-up, now central figures in a cyber crime inquiry.
No domestic lifeline for sidelined duo
On the field, the fallout is immediate. Imam had been named captain of Oil and Gas Development Company for the President’s Trophy. Rizwan, Pakistan’s established wicketkeeper-batter, had been installed as vice-captain for Sui Northern Gas Pipelines.
Neither would have featured in the opening round anyway, according to the same report, because they skipped mandatory fitness testing ahead of the competition. Now their absence has moved from administrative oversight to formal prohibition.
The President’s Trophy is traditionally a proving ground for players looking to force their way back into national contention. For Imam and Rizwan, it was supposed to be a chance to reset after a bruising tour of England.
Instead, their immediate future rests not with runs, catches, or captaincy calls, but with investigators, digital forensics, and written statements – and with a PCB hierarchy that must decide what kind of precedent it wants to set.
