Mohammad Rizwan will captain Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) in the seventh and last round of the first-class President's Trophy, which begins on Monday, October 19. Imam-ul-Haq, who is also being investigated by the NCCIA, has been granted permission to play the last round for Oil & Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL).
This will be Rizwan's first appearance in the tournament, which commenced last month, as he was deemed ineligible to participate. At the time, it was explained away as a failure to appear in a pre-season fitness test. But it later emerged that he had been denied permission to play the tournament because of an ongoing investigation by the country's cybercrimes agency (NCCIA).
Cricinfo also understands that Rizwan will play for Peshawar in next month's Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.
The wicketkeeper-batter has been summoned twice by the NCCIA since he returned to Pakistan after the Lord's Test in August, with the agency opening an enquiry pertaining to online betting and gambling in Pakistan cricket. Rizwan, after his first appearance at the NCCIA's office in Lahore, moved the Lahore High Court against the agency contesting the nature of tne investigation and asking for the return of his mobile phone. The court dismissed his petition.
Before his next appearance at the NCCIA's Lahore office at the start of this month, Rizwan wrote to the agency seeking an explanation into why he was being investigated.
Imam's mobile phone also remains in their custody. While Rizwan opted to move the court and challenge the agency over its conduct, Imam, who like Rizwan had initially been denied permission to play in the President's Trophy, has not opted for legal representation.
Rizwan's return is expected to provide a much-needed boost to SNGPL, who are at the brink of relegation. The finalists of last year's competition are bottom of the eight-team table with five draws and one defeat from six matches. They will play third-placed Khan Research Laboratories (KRL) in the last round at the Shoaib Akhtar Stadium in Rawalpindi.