"Only way to win?" Fans troll Mohammad Rizwan for holding Pat Cummins' hand during trophy reveal shoot

As Pakistan and Australia face off in the first ODI at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground, a pre-match photo shoot involving Pakistan's newly appointed white-ball captain Mohammad Rizwan and Australian captain Pat Cummins has gone viral for an unexpected reason. During the trophy shoot, Rizwan was seen with his hand on Cummins’, sparking a wave of playful trolling from fans.

Social media lit up with comments, with one fan humorously suggesting, "This is the only way left to win the series against Australia." Another fan joked, "Is this a match or a date?" while a third chimed in with, 'Kripya Humain Na Haraye' (Please don’t defeat us), adding to the lighthearted banter.

Rizwan, who recently took over as Pakistan's ODI and T20 captain, is leading the team after Babar Azam stepped down. Babar previously relinquished captaincy across all formats following Pakistan's exit in the group stage of the recent 50-over World Cup. After a brief return as the T20 World Cup captain, he stepped down again, citing the need to manage his workload.

In the opening match of the three-match ODI series, Australia faced early challenges while chasing a modest target, losing regular wickets. However, Pat Cummins' stellar batting performance helped stabilize the innings, allowing Australia to post a total of 204 for 8 by the 34th over. Pakistani bowlers, led by Haris Rauf's three wickets and Shaheen Afridi's two, put up a strong fight, with Naseem Shah and Mohammad Hasnain also contributing with one wicket each.

Despite Rizwan's strategic decision to field an all-pace attack, the plan fell short as the bowlers conceded 21 extra runs, including 17 wides and four leg byes—crucial missteps in a low-scoring match.

With this victory, Australia takes a 1-0 lead in the series. The second ODI is set to take place in Adelaide on November 8, where Pakistan will look to bounce back and level the series.