The decision came after the Pakistan Cricket Board last week turned down ace pacer Naseem Shah’s NOC to play in the Hundred. This crackdown has been carried out due to the reason that Pakistan was unable to find a way to the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup, as it lost to the hosts—United States of America—and its bitter rival, India.
The Pakistan Cricket Board has denied NOCs to Shaheen Shah Afridi, captain Babar Azam, and wicketkeeper Mohammad Rizwan for their participation in the Global T20 Canada, which is scheduled to get underway on July 25. This decision has come as a big blow to Pakistan’s best three players. A board statement said that the decision came after consulting with the selection committee and the trio of players themselves.
This decision came in after the board refused ace pacer Naseem Shah his NOC to participate in the Hundred last week. He was roped in by the Birmingham Phoenix for a contract that would have earned him more than Rs 1 crore 35 lakhs.
This comes in the backdrop of Pakistan’s failure to get past the T20 World Cup Super 8 round, as they lost to the hosts United States of America and arch-rivals India.
All-Format Responsibilities
The board decided because the trio of cricket players was involved in all formats of the game,” revealed the source. “Some of those players, like Shadab Khan, who aren’t all-format players, have been granted NOC by the board to participate in some of the leagues. However, the situation stood different for Babar, Shaheen, and Rizwan because they compete in all formats,” explained a source.
Priority is given to international commitments
Pakistan’s international schedule for 2024–25 is pretty busy. It was announced earlier this week that PCB will visit New Zealand for five Twenty20 Internationals and three One-Day Internationals immediately after the Champions Trophy in February and March. Moreover, Pakistan will be touring South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand for all-format series while hosting matches against Bangladesh, England, and the West Indies at home. The main players are therefore expected to be prepared by the PCB for their overseas commitments.
GT20 Status
The PCB is further worried about the status of the GT20 League as, according to the board, it has not got an approval from ICC. Therefore, that also played a role in the decision taken by the governing body of Pakistan Cricket.
