Fast bowler Naseem Shah slapped with Rs20m fine after social media post about Punjab CM Maryam

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) on Monday slapped a Rs20 million fine on fast bowler Naseem Shah for breaching several clauses of his central contract.

Last week, the cricketer was issued a show-cause notice for “violating the terms of [his] central contract as well as the media policy and regulations”, requiring him to respond within the stipulated time.

The notice was ostensibly issued in response to a social media post in which Naseem had expressed a critical opinion about Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, who was the chief guest during the opening match of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) played at the Gaddafi Stadium.

According to ESPNcricinfo, Naseem had Naseem’s account responded to a post from the PCB media account, saying, “Why is she treated like the Queen at Lord’s?”

It should be mentioned that PSL matches are being played behind closed doors in line with the government’s austerity drive amid the oil crisis triggered by the US-Israel war on Iran.

Minutes later, the post was taken down and replaced with another post saying Naseem’s account had been hacked and had been recovered by him, the report said.

According to a press release issued by the PCB on Monday, a personal hearing was held by a three-member disciplinary committee after Naseem’s reply to the show-cause notice was “received and reviewed”.

It said that after hearing and evaluation of Naseem’s submissions, the committee determined that while the cricketer had tendered an unconditional apology, he had breached “various clauses of his central contract” and was subsequently fined Rs20m.

“It was noted that Naseem’s social media adviser has already been terminated by Naseem and shall be blacklisted by the PCB from associating with any player falling under the PCB’s jurisdiction,” the press release added.

“The PCB remains committed to upholding professional standards, contractual obligations and the integrity of the game,” it reaffirmed.

Later, in a post on X, Naseem said, “A recent post from my account was made by my management team and does not reflect my views.”

He said he took “full responsibility for my platform” and had implemented the “necessary changes to ensure this does not happen again”.

“I sincerely apologise to everyone affected by this misuse of my platform,” he said.

According to ESPNcricinfo, clause 2.23 of the PCB’s code of conduct states that any “public criticism of, or inappropriate comment in relation to the board, any of its officials or sponsors or policies, the International Cricket Council or any of its officers or sponsors, player, player support personnel or match officials including umpires and match referees, irrespective of when such criticism or inappropriate comment is made” is not permitted.

Meanwhile, the National Dialogue Committee (NDC) — formed by former PTI leaders — had condemned the PCB for issuing the show-cause notice to Naseem.

“While we recognise the right of any organisation to uphold its codes of conduct, we assert that the PCB’s action in this instance represents a dangerous overreach that undermines a fundamental pillar of democracy: the right to peaceful, critical expression,” the committee said on Saturday.