Afridi, Younis hold top contracts

Shahid-Younis

Cricket News: The PCB has announced 30 central contracts, with a 15% increase in the monthly retainer ship fee. Shahid Afridi and Younis Khan, who have been dropped from the ODI team, have been retained in the top A category while fast bowler Umar Gul, who plays all three formats, has been dropped from A to B. Kamran Akmal, who wasn’t considered for a central contract last year, has been awarded a Category C contract this time.

The PCB, for the second straight year, has increased the retainer ship incomes, with the Test match fees across all categories up by Rs. 55,000. “The 2013 Central Contracts have raised the Retainer ship fee by 15 per cent,” the PCB said in a statement. “In the 2012 Central Contract, the same had been increased by 25%. It may be noted that the increase in player fees in 2012 made after 3 years as the last increases were made in 2009. Thus in the last two years a total increase of more than 40 % has been made.”The raise this year was a result of lengthy negotiations between players and the PCB, as most of the senior players were unhappy with the retainers offered. Players have been deprived of the ICC tournaments appearance fee by the PCB, and they were also barred from playing the 2012 Bangladesh Cricket League. Last year, a lack of planning meant Umar Akmal, Afridi and Saeed Ajmal failed to fulfill their commitment with their respective Big Bash League franchises.

Zaka Ashraf is PCB’s first selected chairman

 

Zaka Ashraf

News:  Zaka Ashraf, the PCB chairman, has been selected to a four-year term, the first-ever selected present in that office. He was selected under the new PCB organization, which in February replaced the system of appointing the PCB chairman by the supporter of the board, the President of Pakistan.

The PCB’s board of committee had its first meeting today in Islamabad under the new establishment. The nomination committee interviewed the two candidates – Ashraf and former Lahore Stock Exchange chairman Aftab Ahmad Khan – recommended by the Patron and unanimously recommended Ashraf for the chairman’s post.

Thereafter, the board of governors reassembled and unanimously endorsed the recommended nominee of the Patron and the nomination committee.

In 2011, the ICC required that its member boards become autonomous and free of interference from governments by June 2013. Removal of government interference had also been one of the Woolf report recommendations approved by the ICC. The new constitution was produced as a result of the ICC directive and was approved on February 13, vetted by the Ministry of Law on the suggestion of the PCB and ICC feedback. However, in November 2012, ICC said it was reviewing its stance against government involvement in the administration of cricket.

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