The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has awarded central contracts to 30 players for the 2025-26 season, but for the first time in years, no one has been placed in the top Category A.
The new contracts will run from July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026, and players have been split evenly into three groups — Categories B, C, and D.
Category B
Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, once regulars in Category A, have been moved down to Category B. They are joined by Shaheen Afridi, Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Saim Ayub, and Salman Ali Agha.
Category C
This group features a mix of promising youngsters and experienced names: Abdullah Shafique, Naseem Shah, Saud Shakeel, Faheem Ashraf, Sajid Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Haris, Sohaibzada Farhan, Hassan Nawaz, and Noman Ali.
Category D
Category D includes Shan Masood, Hussain Talat, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Abbas Afridi, Khushdil Shah, Ahmed Daniyal, Salman Mirza, Khurram Shahzad, and Sufyan Muqim.
PCB officials said the list was drawn up strictly on performance and consistency. Leaving Category A empty is seen as a clear message: both senior stars and emerging players must raise their game.
