Fakhar Zaman gets show cause notice from PCB over post on Babar Azam's exclusion, comparison to Virat Kohli's situation

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has issued a show cause notice to Fakhar Zaman concerning his comments about the decision to drop Babar Azam for the remaining two Tests against England.

Zaman, a centrally contracted player with the PCB, allegedly breached the players code of conduct and now has seven days (October 21) to explain his position to the board.

Pakistan, the hosts, lost the first Test against England despite scoring 556 in the first innings.


On social media platform X, Zaman expressed his concern over the reports, describing Babar as "our premier batsman" and criticizing the move as potentially sending "a deeply negative message across the team."

Zaman posted his message shortly before the announcement of the 16-member squad for the remaining Tests, which did not include Azam, Shaheen Afridi, or Naseem Shah. In his post, Zaman compared Babar's situation to that of Indian batsman Virat Kohli, who was not dropped during his rough period between 2020 and 2023.


Zaman wrote, "If we are considering sidelining our premier batsman, arguably the best Pakistan has ever produced, it could send a deeply negative message across the team. There is still time to avoid pressing the panic button; we should focus on safeguarding our key players rather than undermining them."

This recent development could further strain the relationship between Zaman and the board, following his earlier complaints to PCB chair Mohsin Naqvi about delays in granting NOCs for T20 leagues around the world.