Enough pampering: PCB to fine Pakistan players PKR 50 lakhs each after T20 World Cup exit?

Karachi—In an unprecedented move that has sent shockwaves through the national dressing room, the Pakistan Cricket Board has decided to impose a PKR 50-lakh fine on every player after the team’s failure to reach the T20 World Cup semi-finals, sources confirmed to The Express Tribune.

The side, captained by Salman Ali Agha, bowed out in the Super 8 stage when their 213-run blitz against Sri Lanka proved insufficient; the 66-run victory margin left their net run rate short of New Zealand’s, extending Pakistan’s streak of missing the last four to four consecutive ICC events. Rather than unveil structural reforms, the board has opted for a direct financial hit on the squad, signalling a dramatic shift in how it will reward future performances.

According to insiders, the decision crystallised after the group-stage defeat to India on 15 February, but the penalties were only finalised once the campaign ended in Sri Lanka, conditions that had been viewed as tailor-made for Pakistan’s attack. “Officials have clearly told the players that enough pampering has been done—from now on, financial benefits will only come with performance,” the report states. No formal press release has yet been issued by the PCB.

Pakistan’s path had already been fraught: a washed-out clash with New Zealand, a loss to England, and a must-win encounter against Sri Lanka that, despite being won, failed to overhaul the required run-rate arithmetic. England’s subsequent victory over New Zealand kept the door ajar, but the narrow win over Sri Lanka ultimately slammed it shut.

Senior figures including former captain Babar Azam, all-rounder Shadab Khan, pace spearhead Shaheen Shah Afridi and Mohammad Nawaz have all come under fire, while Agha is expected to relinquish the leadership once the squad returns home. With the board now linking every rupee to on-field returns, Pakistan cricket enters a new, austere era where sentiment has been replaced by a straightforward equation—win or pay.