Pakistan cricketers receive major jolt after Asia Cup 2025 loss as PCB bars overseas T20 leagues participation

Pakistan Cricket Team lost to India three times in Asia Cup 2025, including the final by five wickets.

In a shocking move, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has suspended all the No Objection Certificates (NOCs) for the Pakistan cricketers that allowed them to participate in the overseas T20 leagues. This includes the Hundred, Vitality T20 Blast, the Big Bash League (BBL), the ILT20, and many more.

A day after Pakistan’s humiliating five-wicket defeat to India in the final of Asia Cup 2025 in Dubai, the PCB made its decision. The PCB reportedly wants all players to concentrate on home contests and national priorities, even though no formal explanation has been given for the change.

Players and agents are unsure of their availability for the international T20 leagues after the notice was issued on September 29 by Sumair Ahmad Syed, the Chief Operating Officer of the PCB, placing all of the NOCs granted to Pakistani cricketers on hold until further directives from chairman Mohsin Naqvi.

Asia Cup humiliation costs Pakistani players their overseas T20 contracts

ESPNCricinfo reported that Sumair Ahmad Syed, the board’s chief operating officer, sent a notice on September 29, informing players and agents of the 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.

Uncertainty surrounds the specifics of the NOCs for the foreign leagues, the length of the suspension, and any potential exemptions. It appears that the PCB used this severe action to discipline the players following their defeat to India in Asia Cup 2025 final.

The PCB prohibited its best players from playing in franchise leagues around the globe, something the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has been doing for around 20 years. A number of well-known players, including Shaheen Afridi, Mohammad Rizwan, and Babar Azam, are directly impacted by the decision.

Babar Azam has been absent from Pakistan’s T20I team for about a year. The board attempted to reinstate him in the middle of Asia Cup 2025, but the organizers turned down their plea.

In the forthcoming Big Bash League (BBL) 2025–2026, they were supposed to play. 18 Pakistani cricket players, including Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, and Naseem Shah, have also been shortlisted for the October 1 ILT20 auction in the United Arab Emirates.

The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Pakistan’s top domestic first-class competition, was postponed from September 22 to October, making the timing especially important.

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