ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Sunday it was awarding central contracts to five emerging cricketers while demoting big names Shaheen Shah Afridi and Haris Rauf, based on a string of lackluster performances.
The PCB awards annual contracts to cricketers divided into categories A, B, C and D. These contracts provide cricketers with a fixed monthly salary, match fees and other benefits.
The board announced in its latest statement that it had awarded central contracts to 25 players. Star batter Babar Azam has been retained in the A category with Muhammad Rizwan while Afridi, once the leader of Pakistan’s lethal pace attack, has been demoted to category B from A.
“As part of the PCB’s strategy to incentivize, encourage and reward talented and emerging cricketers, five players have been offered central contracts for the first time,” the board said.
“They are Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas Afridi, Mohammad Ali, Muhammad Irfan Khan and Usman Khan.”
Azam has been retained in the top category despite a string of poor performances. The cricketer was dropped from Pakistan’s second and third test matches against England after he failed to score a fifty in over eight test matches on the trot.
An out-of-form Afridi has been unable to perform for Pakistan. The left-arm fast bowler was also dropped after Pakistan’s humiliating loss to England in the first test match in Multan. The development also takes place amid local media reports of Afridi being involved in disputes with Azam and former Pakistani selector Mohammad Yousuf.
Fiery Pakistani pacer Rauf has also been demoted to category C from B while white-ball regular Fakhar Zaman has not been awarded any contract.
Zaman made headlines earlier this month when he publicly expressed concern at the PCB’s decision to drop Azam after the first England Test. In a post on social media platform X, Zaman said the PCB’s move could send a “deeply negative message” across the team.
Pakistan’s test captain Shan Masood, meanwhile, has been granted a category B contract subject to him retaining his captaincy. Pakistani cricketers Sajid Khan, Noman Ali and Salman Ali Agha, who put in impressive performances against England, have been awarded category C contracts.
Pakistan Cricket Board demotes pacer Afridi, awards contracts to five emerging players
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Pakistan Cricket Board demotes pacer Afridi, awards contracts to five emerging players
- Shaheen Afridi demoted to category B after lackluster performances, reports of disputes with colleagues
- Fakhar Zaman loses out on central contract while pacer Haris Rauf has been demoted to category C
Pakistan skipper Rizwan says ‘not ashamed’ he can’t speak English fluently
- Fans frequently poke fun at Mohammad Rizwan for his inability to speak English fluently during post-match conferences
- Pakistani captain says nation demands cricketing achievements from him rather than ability to speak English fluently
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s ODI skipper Mohammad Rizwan said this week that he was “not ashamed” of his inability to speak English fluently, adding that only his ability to perform as a cricketer mattered at the end of the day.
Rizwan, like several other Pakistani professional cricketers, had to choose the sport over education to pursue it as a full-time career. Fans have poked fun in the past at iconic Pakistani cricketers such as Javed Miandad, Inzamam ul Haq, Saeed Ajmal and others for their inability to speak English fluently.
Since being appointed captain last year, Rizwan’s interactions with the media have increased. This has put his inability to speak English fluently with reporters from around the world in the spotlight. Cricket fans have poked fun at Rizwan with memes on the Internet while others have criticized him for not opting for a translator when speaking to the press in English.
“I am proud that whatever I say, I say it from the heart and I tell the truth,” Rizwan said while speaking to reporters at a press conference in Karachi on Friday.
“But I am not even one percent ashamed that I am a Pakistani and I can’t speak English,” he added.
The Pakistan captain said he regretted not completing his education, admitting that he could not express himself properly due to it. Rizwan said he advises young cricketers to pursue education so that they can express themselves properly unlike him.
“My Pakistan at this time is demanding cricket from me,” Rizwan said. “It is not demanding English. If it wants English, I will leave cricket to become a professor, learn it and then return. But I don’t have time for that.”
Rizwan, who leads the Pakistan Super League (PSL) franchise Multan Sultans, will be seen in action on Saturday against the Karachi Kings.
The third match of the PSL 2025 is scheduled to kick off at 8:00 p.m. in the southern port city of Karachi.
Defending champions Islamabad United cruised to an eight-wicket win over Lahore Qalandars in Rawalpindi in the PSL opener on Friday night.
Pakistan says Zainebiyoun Brigade militant arrested in Karachi for involvement in sectarian attacks
- CTD says suspect was directly and indirectly involved in sectarian activities funded by Zainebiyoun Brigade
- Pakistan’s interior ministry designated Zainebiyoun Brigade as a “terrorist” organization in March 2024
KARACHI: The Counterterrorism Department (CTD) in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province said on Saturday it had arrested a key member of the Iran-backed Zainebiyoun Brigade outfit in Karachi, accusing him of being involved in sectarian attacks in the city.
Pakistani authorities have arrested several militants affiliated with the Zainebiyoun Brigade in recent years, notably in the country’s commercial hub of Karachi. The city has been a significant recruitment hub for the militant outfit, along with three other regions – Parachinar, Quetta and Gilgit Baltistan.
Pakistan’s interior ministry designated Zainebiyoun Brigade as a “terrorist” organization in March 2024, saying it had reasons to believe the outfit was engaged in certain activities “prejudicial to the peace and security of the country.”
The CTD said in its press release that Syed Muhammad Musa Rizvi, alias Kamran, was arrested from the city’s Soldier Bazaar area, adding that the accused had been in hiding for fear of being arrested.
“The suspect is an important member of the Zainebiyoun Brigade and has been directly and indirectly involved in various sectarian activities that have been regularly funded by the organization,” the CTD said.
It said Rizvi had confessed to carrying out a sectarian attack in Karachi’s Taimuria area on Sept. 5, 2023, which had resulted in the killing of a person named Qari Khurram and injuries to two others.
The CTD said Rizvi also confessed to killing a person named Sher Khan on Sep. 20, 2023, in Karachi’s Mobina Town with his accomplices and another named Jannat Gul on Nov. 26, 2023, in the city’s Sachal area.
It said that Rizvi confessed that on Nov. 13, 2024, that he played the role of a facilitator in the killing of a person named Syed Abu Hashim in Karachi’s Samanabad area.
It said that the suspect was being investigated for terror financing and other cases based on which he had been arrested.
“The investigation of the accused is going on and more revelations are expected,” the CTD said.
In January 2024, Sindh CTD said it had apprehended Syed Muhammad Mehdi, a suspected militant associated with the Zainebiyoun Brigade who had been involved in an assassination attempt on Mufti Taqi Usmani, a top Pakistani cleric, in Karachi in 2019. The attack had killed two of Mufti Usmani’s guards.
In July 2022, then Pakistan interior minister Rana Sanaullah Khan told the Senate that Zainebiyoun Brigade members were among the militants “found actively involved in terrorist activities” in the country in 2019-2021.
Pakistan Navy stresses importance of combat readiness to counter regional maritime threats
- Pakistan navy chief chairs meeting of apex decision-making forum to discuss plans, review policies
- Appreciates navy’s efforts in acquiring advanced platforms and technologies to counter threats
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s navy chief this week stressed the importance of maintaining combat readiness to counter conventional and non-conventional regional maritime threats, the navy said in a statement, appreciating the force’s efforts in acquiring the latest technologies and advanced platforms.
Pakistan’s Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Naveed Ashraf chaired the Command & Staff Conference at the Naval Headquarters in Islamabad on Friday.
The Command & Staff Conference is the apex decision-making forum of the Pakistan Navy, where Ashraf, along with all principal staff officers and field commanders, review policies and strategic plans.
“The Naval Chief emphasized the importance of maintaining perpetual combat readiness to effectively counter both traditional and non-traditional threats in the maritime domain,” a statement by the navy said on Friday.
“He appreciated the navy’s efforts in acquiring advanced platforms and technologies, expressing confidence in its operational preparedness to safeguard Pakistan’s maritime frontiers.”
The navy said that participants of the conference assessed the evolving maritime situation in the region with a focus on national security, geostrategic affairs and combat readiness.
Ashraf commended the navy for successfully hosting the multinational AMAN-25 naval exercise and the AMAN Dialogue, underscoring their significance in fostering maritime collaboration among regional and extra-regional naval forces.
“He noted that these initiatives reflect Pakistan’s commitment to cooperative maritime security, in line with the navy’s vision for a secure and stable maritime environment,” the navy said.
Pakistan Navy regularly collaborates with allies and friendly nations, conducting joint military exercises and other activities to enhance synergy, promote regional peace and stability, deter piracy, drug trafficking and other illicit maritime activities.
Mumbai attacks: India questions Pakistan-born Canadian accused after extradition
- India accuses Tahawwur Hussain Rana, 66, of being one of the key plotters of the 2008 Mumbai attacks
- Pakistan has distanced itself from Rana, saying he hasn’t renewed his Pakistani-origin documents in two decades
NEW DELHI: Indian investigative agencies on Friday questioned a man they extradited from the United States and charged with being a “mastermind” of the deadly 2008 Mumbai siege.
India accuses Tahawwur Hussain Rana, 66, of being a member of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) group, designated by the United Nations as a “terrorist” organization.
Rana, a Pakistan-born Canadian, has denied all charges — including waging war against India, conspiring to commit murder and acts of “terrorism.” He could face the death penalty if convicted.
New Delhi blamed the LeT group — as well as intelligence officials from New Delhi’s arch-enemy Pakistan — for the 2008 Mumbai attacks when 10 gunmen carried out a multi-day siege of the country’s financial capital.
Nine of the attackers died in the siege, while one captured alive was tried and hanged.
India’s National Investigation Agency (NIA), which accuses Rana of being the attack’s “mastermind,” took him into custody under heavy guard after he arrived in a special flight to the capital New Delhi on Thursday evening.
“Rana will remain in custody for 18 days, during which the agency will question him in detail in order to unravel the complete conspiracy behind the deadly 2008 attacks,” NIA said.
Rana, who served in the Pakistani army’s medical corps, faces 10 criminal charges including conspiracy, murder, commission of a “terrorist” act, and forgery.
Rana, who has denied the charges, is accused by India of helping his long-term friend, David Coleman Headley, who was sentenced by a US court in 2013 to 35 years in prison after pleading guilty to aiding LeT militants, including by scouting target locations in Mumbai.
Rana is accused of playing a smaller role than Headley, but India maintains he is one of the key plotters.
He was flown to India after the US Supreme Court this month rejected his bid to remain in the United States, where he was serving a 14-year sentence related to another LeT-linked attack.
India released a photograph of Rana arriving in Delhi, taken from his back, dressed in a brown jumpsuit and guarded by NIA officers.
India also accused Pakistan of direct involvement in the Mumbai attack and Rana of having connections with its intelligence agencies, charges Islamabad denies.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry spokesman Shafqat Ali said that Rana “did not apply to renew Pakistani documents over the past two decades.”
Most parts of Pakistan to experience heatwave conditions from tomorrow— Met Office
- Day temperatures likely to remain 06 to 08°C above normal in southern Pakistan, says Met Office
- Says rising temperatures in northern areas may increase the melting of snowfall from Apr. 14-18
ISLAMABAD: Most parts of the country are likely to experience heatwave conditions from tomorrow, Apr. 13, Pakistan’s Meteorological (Met) Department said this week as it warned citizens to take precautionary measures to stay safe.
In a press release issued on Friday, the Met Office predicted that a high-pressure system is likely to grip the upper atmosphere from Apr. 13, due to which heatwave conditions may develop in most parts of the country.
It said these conditions are expected to change into “severe heatwave conditions” in southern Pakistan from Monday, Apr. 14.
“Day temperatures are likely to remain 06 to 08°C above normal in southern half (Sindh, southern Punjab and Balochistan) from 13th to 18th April,” the weather department said.
It added that day temperatures are likely to remain 04 to 06°C above normal in central and upper Punjab, Islamabad, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan during the same period.
The PMD urged children, women and senior citizens to take precautionary measures against the heat such as avoiding exposure to direct sunlight during the day and remaining hydrated.
“Farmers are advised to manage their crop activities (wheat harvesting) keeping in view the weather conditions and take care of their livestock as well,” it said.
The Met Office said that rising temperatures in Pakistan’s northern areas may increase snowfall melting from Apr. 14-18.
“All concerned authorities are advised to remain “ALERT” and take necessary measures to avoid any untoward situation due to heatwave conditions,” it added.
Pakistan has witnessed frequent, erratic changes in its weather patterns, including floods, droughts, cyclones, torrential rainstorms, heatwaves and the slow-onset threat of glacial melting, in recent years that scientists have blamed on human-driven climate change.
In 2022, unusually heavy rains triggered floods in many parts of the country, killing over 1,700 people, inflicting economic losses of around $30 billion and affecting at least 30 million people.
