PCB announces contracts; Babar, Rizwan downgraded, no player in category A

Star Pakistan players Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan have been demoted to Category B from A as the Pakistan Cricket Board announced the men's central contract list for 2025-26 on Tuesday.

Players such as Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha and Shadab Khan have been rewarded for their performances across the last 12 months by earning an upgrade on the side's central contract list for 2025-26. The quintet all performed admirably over the past year and earned a promotion to Category B on the latest contract list that Pakistan unveiled on Tuesday.

In total, 30 players have secured central contracts for the year starting July 1, 2025, with 10 players listed in Category B.

That list is headed by former skipper Babar Azam, star opener Fakhar Zaman and pace spearhead Shaheen Afridi, with Abrar, Rauf, Ayub, Ali Agha and Shadab joining the group until at least June 30 2026.

A further 10 players are listed in both Category C and Category D, with Pakistan choosing against having any of their stars in Category A for the next period.

Only Babar and Mohammad Rizwan were in Category A for 2024-25, with the pair dropping back to Category B for the new period. Both players were also recently left out of Pakistan's squad for next month's Asia Cup.

There is a total of 12 new additions to the contract list, highlighting the emergence of promising new talent and the board's strategic focus on squad depth and future development.

Compared to last year’s list of 27 contracted players, the PCB has expanded the pool to 30, including 12 fresh additions, highlighting the emergence of promising new talent and the board’s strategic focus on squad depth and future development.

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 have missed out on contracts this year: Aamir Jamal, Haseebullah, Kamran Ghulam, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Muhammad Irfan Khan and Usman Khan – all in Category D.