The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has issued a warning to centrally contracted players, emphasising strict compliance with contract terms and social media rules, following recent controversial online activity.
Players are now required to obtain prior approval from the media department of PCB before posting on social media, ensuring all communications fully comply with contractual and policy guidelines.
Managers of centrally contracted cricketers have also been reminded to monitor online activity of players and ensure that political content or controversial posts are strictly avoided under all circumstances.
Sources within the cricket authority indicate that any player violating social media rules could face a minimum fine of PKR 10 million, with harsher penalties for repeated or serious breaches of policy.
The warning follows a PKR 20 million fine imposed on national fast bowler Naseem Shah for a controversial tweet regarding Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz last week.
The right-arm pacer was found to have breached multiple clauses of his central contract and PCB social media policy after a personal hearing before a three-member disciplinary committee.
Despite issuing an unconditional apology and terminating his social media advisor, who has been blacklisted, Naseem Shah was required to pay the substantial fine for the violation.
The incident occurred during the opening ceremony of PSL season 11 at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, where Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz attended as the guest of honour, greeted by PCB officials.
Shortly after the event, Naseem Shah posted on X, formerly Twitter, quoting a PCB media post and questioning why the Chief Minister was treated like a “queen.”
Naseem later stated that his account had been hacked, insisting the post did not represent his personal opinion and that the account was successfully recovered after the security breach.
The PCB has adopted a stricter stance, enforcing rules against political expression by cricketers, following previous disciplinary action involving allrounder Aamer Jamal last year notably.
Jamal was fined more than PKR 1 million, approximately USD 4000, after displaying a slogan supporting former prime minister and ex-Pakistan captain Imran Khan publicly.
During a training session in the home Test series against England, Jamal wore “804” on his hat, referencing Imran Khan’s prisoner number since August 2023.
The fine imposed on Naseem Shah is over sixteen times higher than Jamal’s penalty, equating to roughly eight months of his current central contract salary.
