PCB to hand out central contract to players later this month

Karachi, Jan 17 (PTI) The Pakistan Cricket Board plans to hand out its new central contracts to players for the fiscal year by the end of this month with cricketers under scrutiny for alleged corruption or links with bookies or those facing fitness issues unlikely to get fresh contracts. Sources in the board said that former captain Shoaib Malik or test leg-spinner Danish Kaneria were unlikely to be included in the new central contracts list until they satisfied the board's integrity committee and got unofficial clearance to play again for Pakistan. The PCB has officially never confirmed on what suspicions the two players were not considered for recent selections for the New Zealand tour of the World Cup preliminary squad but the source said they would not get contracts unless they fulfill all demands of the board regarding the submission of details of their assets, accounts and sources of income. One source said they were some other player who could miss out on the central contracts for different reasons. "This time the board is going to be very particular while finalising the list of players to get central contracts," the source said. He said even those senior players who were no longer certain selections like Muhammad Yousuf or Shoaib Akhtar were unlikely to be given contracts. Although Akhtar has remained a regular member of the T20 and one-day team in recent months, Yousuf was dropped for the tour to New Zealand and is not certain to be picked in the World Cup squad as well. Kaneria was placed in the category A last year in the central contracts list. "The selectors have been asked to draw up a list of players and recommend them for the central contracts and retainers but the board has the authority to finalise and shortlist the players," the source added. The central contracts given out last year the source had expired on December 31st. "The new contracts whenever they are given out will be backdated from January 1st and there is o bar on players being added to the list later on as it happened last year," he noted. The players who get central contracts are given monthly salaries by the board in three different slabs with the A category players getting 250,000 per month and those in the second and third categories being paid 200,000 and 150,000.PTI Cor ATK