LAHORE (Dunya News) - The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has unveiled central contracts for 30 male cricketers for the 2025–26 international season, effective from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026.
Unlike previous years, no player has been placed in Category A, with 10 players each distributed across Categories B, C, and D.
Compared to last year’s tally of 27, the PCB has expanded the pool to 30 players, with 12 fresh entrants reflecting the Board’s emphasis on depth and development. The new faces include 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 following impressive performances last season: Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, and Shadab Khan, all moving from Category C to B.
Meanwhile, nine players retained their previous categories, including Shaheen Shah Afridi (B), Abdullah Shafique, Saud Shakeel, Sajid Khan, and Noman Ali (C), Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Wasim Jr., and Mohammad Abbas Afridi (D).
On the other hand, eight cricketers have missed out on contracts this cycle: Aamir Jamal, Haseebullah, Kamran Ghulam, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Huraira, Muhammad Irfan Khan, and Usman Khan.
List of Centrally Contracted Players (2025–26):
• Category B (10 players): Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Rizwan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, 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, Saud Shakeel
• Category D (10 players): Ahmed Daniyal, Hussain Talat, Khurram Shahzad, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jr., Salman Mirza, Shan Masood, Sufyan Moqim