Babar, Rizwan lose top-tier status in new PCB contracts

Former skipper Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, who previously featured in Category A, have been moved down to Category B in the Pakistan Cricket Board’s (PCB) central contracts for the 2025–26 season.

Shan Masood, who was in Category B last year, has now been placed in Category D.

The PCB, in its announcement on Tuesday, confirmed that 30 players have been awarded central contracts effective from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026. The list comprises ten players each in Categories B, C and D, while no cricketer has been included in Category A this year.

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

Five players have been promoted owing to their performances over the past year: Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha and Shadab Khan, all moving from Category C to B.

Nine players have retained their contracts in the same categories, including Abdullah Shafique, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi.

Eight players have missed out this year. Aamir Jamal, Haseebullah, Kamran Ghulam, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Muhammad Irfan Khan and Usman Khan — all previously in Category D — have not been offered contracts.

The final list for 2025–26 places Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Rizwan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi in Category B.

Category C includes Abdullah Shafique, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Sahibzada Farhan, Sajid Khan and Saud Shakeel.

Category D comprises Ahmed Daniyal, Hussain Talat, Khurram Shahzad, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Salman Mirza, Shan Masood and Sufyan Moqim.