Babar, Rizwan face demotion as PCB unveils central contracts for 2025-26

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Tuesday unveiled central contracts for 30 male cricketers for the 2025–26 season with no players placed in the top-tier Category A.

The contracts, effective from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026, include ten players each in Categories B, C, and D. The board said that the expanded pool of 30 players, up from 27 last year, shows its "continued commitment to recognising and supporting national talent.”

In its press release, PCB highlighted that 12 new players had earned contracts this year, including 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.

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Five players have been promoted following strong performances: Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha and Shadab Khan, all moving from Category C to Category B. Nine others have retained their contracts in the same categories, among them Shaheen Shah Afridi (Category B), Abdullah Shafique (Category C), and Saud Shakeel (Category C).

PCB also confirmed that eight players, including Aamir Jamal, Kamran Ghulam and Mohammad Huraira, missed out on contracts this year after being placed in Category D last season.

Last year, only Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan were in Category A. The two, now placed in Category B, have seen their roles reduced in the T20 squad amid the board’s shift toward younger talent.

🚨 3️⃣0️⃣ players have been awarded central contracts for the 2025-26 international season 📝

Read more ➡️ https://t.co/g9epcZUovJ pic.twitter.com/2JGR7kId1Y

— Pakistan Cricket (@TheRealPCB) August 19, 2025