The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced its central contracts for the 2025-26 season with a major shake-up, as no player has been awarded the most prestigious Category A contract.
Former captain Babar Azam and wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan, who were the only players in Category A last year, have been moved down to Category B. Pakistan’s Test captain Shan Masood has faced an even steeper drop, falling from Category B last year to Category D this season.
The PCB confirmed that ten players have been placed in each tier, increasing the total number of centrally contracted players from 27 to 30. Among the notable changes, Fakhar Zaman has returned to Category B after missing out on a contract last year following disciplinary issues.
Board officials attributed the decision to exclude players from Category A to overall team performance. Sources told ESPNcricinfo that no player was deemed worthy of the top contract based on performances over the past year. It has been internally communicated that players may be promoted to Category A during the season if their form justifies it.
The PCB’s official statement also emphasized the decision, saying, “Notably, no player has been selected for Category A in this cycle.”
There were, however, several promotions. Abrar Ahmed, Saim Ayub, Haris Rauf, Salman Ali Agha and Shadab Khan all moved up to Category B. New entrants to the central contract list include Sufiyan Muqim, Hasan Nawaz and Mohammad Haris, while Aamir Jamal, Kamran Ghulam, Mir Hamza, Irfan Khan Niazi and Usman Khan have been dropped altogether.
This marks the final year of the landmark three-year deal agreed between the players and the PCB, which provided record pay rises and a share of ICC revenue. The same structure has been retained, with only category placements altered. The contracts are backdated from July 1, 2025, and will run for 12 months.
PCB Central Contract Categories 2025-26
Category B: Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Rizwan, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Shadab Khan, Shaheen Shah Afridi
Category C: Abdullah Shafique, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Haris, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Noman Ali, Sahibzada Farhan, Sajid Khan, Saud Shakeel
Category D: Ahmed Daniyal, Hussain Talat, Khurram Shahzad, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Salman Mirza, Shan Masood, Sufyan Muqim
