Mohammad Rizwan and Imam-ul-Haq are set to play first-class cricket again. Sources quoted by Geo Super on November 2, 2026, say Rizwan will represent Peshawar and Imam will turn out for Multan when the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Grade-I first round begins on November 3. Both men missed the opening six rounds after the board initially withheld permission for them to play. Both were then cleared for the final round. Neither clearance, on the public record, closed the investigation that kept them out.
What was announced on November 2
The Geo Super report says both players have made themselves available for their regional sides: Rizwan for Peshawar, Imam for Multan. The first round of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy starts on November 3. Availability is not selection in a playing eleven, and the report names neither man in a confirmed team sheet. But after two months out, availability itself is the development: it moves both men from departmental into regional cricket.
The six rounds they missed
The President’s Trophy Grade-I 2026-27 began on September 12. Rizwan captained Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited and Imam led Oil and Gas Development Company Limited. Both missed the opening six rounds after the board initially withheld permission. Their absence, Geo Super reports, came amid an ongoing investigation by the National Cyber Crime Investigation Agency, reportedly concerning alleged online betting and gambling, and an inquiry into the alleged leaking of dressing-room information on Pakistan’s previous England tour. No charges from that investigation have been publicly reported. What is documented is the cost: six rounds missed, in a seven-round competition, before either man played a ball.
The fitness test story, and the clearance that followed
The board’s public explanation was different at first. CricTracker reported on October 18 that the board publicly cited a failure to appear in the pre-season fitness test, while the actual reason behind the absence was the cybercrime agency’s investigation. Rizwan was summoned twice after returning from the Lord’s Test in August, and his phone was taken into custody, according to the same reporting. He challenged the investigation in the Lahore High Court and sought his phone back; the court dismissed his petition. Imam, who suffered a calf injury in England, was also under scrutiny, his phone still held as of the October 18 reporting. The probe is reported to fall under Section 14 of the Prevention of Electronic Crimes Act 2016, which covers obtaining an unlawful financial benefit. Clearance came only ahead of the final round: the board’s director of domestic cricket cleared Rizwan on October 18, a day before it began on October 19, and Rizwan captained his side against Khan Research Laboratories in Rawalpindi, while Imam was cleared against Ghani Glass in Islamabad. Both sides went into that round seventh and eighth, facing relegation. Neither clearance came with a public statement saying the investigation had concluded, which is why this return reads as a cricketing decision, not a legal one. The agency’s wider work continues, including the NCCIA’s month-long cybercrime drive that arrested 1,129 suspects.
Departmental sides to regional sides: why the switch matters
In the President’s Trophy, Rizwan and Imam played for employers: a gas pipeline company and an oil and gas company. In the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, they play for regions: Peshawar and Multan. Departmental cricket rewards the employer that signs a player. Regional cricket is what selectors watch for first-class form. The switch also raises the stakes. A final-round appearance for a struggling departmental side can be written off as a favour. A full Trophy campaign is judged on runs, keeping and results.
Three tests before this return means anything
First, the team sheets on November 3. Availability is not a playing eleven: if both men are named for Peshawar and Multan, the return is real, and if either is left out, the questions start again. Second, the investigation question. Will the board or the agency say whether the probe is still open, and on what terms players under scrutiny keep playing? A clear statement either way would end months of reading between the lines. Third, form after months out. Imam has not played competitively since August, and both men missed six rounds of the season’s first competition. Runs and keeping in the first round will tell us more than any clearance letter. Pakistan’s white-ball side has moved on without them: Fakhar Zaman’s 127 in the tri-series final sealed a home title on October 31, and Salman Agha’s 107 against Sri Lanka in the tri-series opener showed what a domestic return can lead to. Rizwan and Imam now get the same test in red-ball cricket: not whether they are allowed to play, but whether they can still dominate when they do. Follow more sports news from Pakistan for the November 3 team sheets and the first-round scores.
