PCB central contracts: Babar, Rizwan demoted to group B after national team’s poor show

Former captain Babar Azam and current ODI skipper Mohammed Rizwan have been downgraded to category ‘B’ in the latest list of central contracts released by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday.

The PCB, in fact, has not found any cricketer fit to be in the elite category and has placed 30 players in Category ‘B’, ‘C’ and ‘D’.

“The contracts, effective from July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2026, reflect the Board’s continued commitment to recognising and supporting national talent. This year’s roster sees ten players each placed in Categories B, C, and D. Notably, no player has been selected for Category A in this cycle,” PCB stated in a media release.

The PCB release doesn’t mention the valuation of the contracts.

Babar and Rizwan have been penalised for their consistently poor show across all marquee events, including last year’s T20 World Cup, this year’s ICC Champions Trophy, and the bilaterals against Bangladesh and the West Indies.

T20 skipper Salman Ali Agha, on the other hand, has earned a promotion from group C to B.

The other notable promotions are opener Saim Ayub and pacer Haris Rauf.

Compared to last year’s list of 27 contracted players, the PCB has expanded the pool to 30, including 12 fresh additions.

The new entrants are Ahmed Daniyal, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Sahibzada Farhan, Salman Mirza and Sufyan Moqim.

Additionally, nine players have retained their positions in the same categories.

They are Abdullah Shafique (Category C), Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jnr – all in Category D, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel – all in Category C and Shaheen Shah Afridi (Category B).

Eight players who have missed out on contracts this year include Aamir Jamal, Haseebullah, Kamran Ghulam, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Muhammad Irfan Khan and Usman Khan. They were all in Category (D).

Pakistan’s centrally-contacted players:

Category B (10 players): Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Rizwan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi

Category C (10 players): Abdullah Shafique, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Sahibzada Farhan, Sajid Khan and Saud Shakeel

Category D (10 players): Ahmed Daniyal, Hussain Talat, Khurram Shahzad, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Salman Mirza, Shan Masood and Sufyan Moqim