No central contracts for Pak cricketers failing to turn up for domestic cricket: PCB

Lahore, June 15 (IANS) Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Mohsin Naqvi has warned the country’s cricketers that they will not be handed central contracts if they do not play domestic events, as the board unveiled a radical formula for the annual payments, a news report said on Monday.

The new central contract model for 2026 replaced the traditional A, B, C, D categories with five format-based tracks, which the Pakistan Cricket Board claimed was a “world-first” structure in cricket, according to a report in Telecom Asia Sport.

Pakistan’s recent fall in Tests has prompted former players to suggest to the PCB that it make it mandatory for players to participate in domestic cricket, especially the first-class four-day matches, as it will help groom players for international challenges.

Pakistan finished ninth and last in the third cycle of the World Test Championship (WTC) and lags eighth in the fourth cycle after a humiliating 2-0 defeat in Bangladesh, followed by a defeat at the same margin to the same team in 2024.

Pakistan’s performances in the International Cricket Council (ICC) events are also poor as they crashed out of the T20I World Cup 2024, ODI World Cup 2023, and the Champions Trophy 2025 in the first round.

Pakistan also failed to qualify for the semi-final of the T20I World Cup this year. “To lift our standards, we want all the top players to compete in domestic cricket, and those who do not feature in first-class events will not get the central contracts,” said Naqvi, according to the report in www.telecomasia.net.

The new formula is also backed by Pakistan’s white-ball head coach Mike Hesson, who said impactful performances will now be given more weightage. “This is a data-driven formula, and it will give players with impactful performances their rightful value,” said Hesson.

The top format, named Track AB, will be for those who play Tests and ODIs, while Track A will be for dedicated Test-playing cricketers.

“Those who play Tests only will be given added incentives and permission to play overseas first-class cricket to strengthen red-ball development,” said Aqib Javed, the director of High Performance. “The new framework aims to protect Test cricket and bring more transparency and fairness to contract decisions.”

Similarly, Track BC will be for white-ball specialists (ODI & T20I) while Track C will be for T20I & Franchise specialists.

The players who undergo development at the High Performance academy will get a Track D contract.

–IANS

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