“For our brothers and sisters in Gaza” - Mohammad Rizwan's controversial statement after 131* vs Sri Lanka in 2023 World Cup

Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan shared a heartwarming message to the people of Hyderabad for their hospitality after his match-winning ton against Sri Lanka in the World Cup match on Tuesday, October 11.

Chasing 345, the right-handed batter smashed an unbeaten 131 runs off 121 balls, including three sixes and eight boundaries. He also shared a 176-run partnership with Abdullah Shafique for the third wicket to recover Pakistan by 37/2.

Rizwan wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter):

“This was for our brothers and sisters in Gaza. Happy to contribute in the win. Credits to the whole team and especially Abdullah Shafique and Hassan Ali for making it easier. Extremely grateful to the people of Hyderabad for the amazing hospitality and support throughout.”

Rizwan also dedicated his ton to the people in Gaza, where around 1000 people were killed and 5000 injured in Hamas' attack on Israel.

“Always a proud moment whenever you perform for your country” – Mohammad Rizwan

Mohammad Rizwan was super excited after scoring a ton in a match-winning cause against Sri Lanka on Tuesday. He told in the post-match show:

“Always a proud moment for me whenever you perform for your country. I am speechless at this moment. It was difficult. The thing was that after the bowling innings we went back and everyone was confident. Unluckily, they got Babar Azam early, but we got good partnerships after that. It's a good track, was supporting to us. I told Shafique to take it step by step.”

Rizwan had previously scored 68 against the Netherlands in their opening World Cup game, which Pakistan by 81 runs. He also impressed with the bat in the warmup games, scoring 86* and 103 against Sri Lanka and New Zealand, respectively.

In 2023, Rizwan has amassed 827 runs in 17 innings at an average of 75.18, including one ton and seven half-centuries.

After consecutive wins in Hyderabad, Babar Azam and Co. will move to Ahmedabad for the high-voltage Indo-Pak game at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Saturday, October 14.

Click here to check out the PAK vs SL 2023 World Cup full scorecard.