PCB Suspends No-Objection Certificates Amid Performance Focus Plan

The PCB has decided to stop giving no-objection certificates to players who want to play in T20 leagues outside Pakistan. Sumair Ahmad Syed, the board’s chief operating officer, sent out a notice on September 29 to inform players and their agents about this decision.

"With the approval of Chairman PCB, all No Objection Certificates (NOCs) for players with respect to participation in leagues and other out of country tournaments are hereby put on hold until further orders," the notice, seen by ESPNcricinfo, read.

PCB Suspends NOCs for Players in Overseas T20 Leagues

No reason has been shared for this move. Some reports say that the PCB wants to link NOCs to players’ performance, but the exact rules are not yet clear. The board’s idea seems to be to encourage players to focus on performing well in national and domestic matches.

It’s also not known how long it will take before the current NOC suspension is lifted. The move came a day after Pakistan's tight loss in the Asia Cup final to India in the UAE, but from a tour in which they also won a T20I tri-series. The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan's premier domestic first-class competition, is also due to start in October, having been delayed from its original start date of September 22.

It’s still unclear how the NOCs will work, if there will be any exceptions, or how long they will be in place. This season, seven Pakistani players, including Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shaheen Afridi, are set to play in the BBL, which starts in December. In addition, 16 Pakistani players are on the shortlist for the ILT20 auction in the UAE on October 1. This list includes Naseem Shah, Saim Ayub, and Fakhar Zaman.

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