Cricket board prohibits political posts; violations could result in a minimum Rs10 million fine
LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has cautioned centrally contracted players against posting on social media without prior approval from its media department, sources told Geo News.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has issued a strict advisory to centrally contracted players regarding their contractual obligations, particularly concerning conduct on social media.
The directive comes in the wake of heightened scrutiny after national fast bowler Naseem Shah was fined Rs20 million for a tweet related to Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. The 23-year-old pacer was penalised for violating the board’s social media rules.
Sources familiar with the matter said players have been instructed to strictly follow the clauses in their central contracts, including the PCB’s social media policy. Managers of players have also been reminded of the relevant guidelines. “Political posts will not be tolerated under any circumstances,” the sources quoted the PCB as saying.
The PCB has warned that any player posting controversial content could face a minimum fine of Rs10 million.
The controversy arose during the opening ceremony of the ongoing Pakistan Super League at Gaddafi Stadium last week, which was attended by the Punjab chief minister as the chief guest.
During the event, PCB Chairman Mohsin Naqvi welcomed Maryam Nawaz and introduced her to the franchise owners participating in the tournament.
She extended her best wishes to all teams and was also introduced to players from both sides ahead of the curtain-raiser.
Shortly afterward, a post from Naseem Shah’s X account attracted significant attention. The post, a quote-retweet of a PCB media update showing Chairman Naqvi greeting the chief minister, quickly sparked widespread engagement on social media, generating debate and mixed reactions among fans and the cricketing community.
Responding to the controversy, the right-arm pacer reassured followers that the post was unintentional, explaining that his account had been hacked.
“This account of Naseem was recently hacked but has now been successfully recovered,” he stated, clarifying that the incident was due to a security breach and not a deliberate post.
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