The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has fined fast bowlers Shaheen Shah Afridi and Naseem Shah for their transgressions during the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
Shaheen Afridi punished for breaching security protocols
The former, who is Lahore Qalandars’ captain, has been slapped with a PKR 10 lakh (approximately INR 3.39 lakh) fine. Shaheen and Sikandar Raza had violated security protocols by inviting four individuals to Raza’s hotel room. They didn’t get the approval to allow anyone in their hotel rooms, and on-duty security personnel were strictly against it.
However, Shaheen didn’t listen. Raza took the entire blame on himself, stating that he had asked Shaheen to receive his friends and family at the door. But this wasn’t enough to save the Qalandars’ captain. In the meantime, Shaheen was accused of ball tampering and awaits a verdict on that matter as well.
“In the interest of maintaining discipline and demonstrating accountability, the franchise has taken a voluntary and proactive step by imposing a fine of PKR 1 million on Shaheen Shah Afridi for his involvement. Lahore Qalandars has also formally communicated a detailed response, along with its observations on the matter, to the PCB,” Qalandars said in a release.
Repercussions of Naseem Shah’s tweet
On March 26, Naseem Shah posted on X (formerly Twitter), where he criticised Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz. “Why is she treated like the Queen at Lord’s?” Naseem had written as Maryam arrived at the Gaddafi Stadium for the PSL 2026 opener.
Naseem deleted that tweet and made another post, stating that his account was hacked momentarily. But the arrow had already left the bow. Two days later, he was served a show-cause notice by the PCB.
The PCB doesn’t take any political positioning lightly. Last year, the PCB handed a PKR 10 lakh fine to all-rounder Aamer Jamal for donning a hat that showed support to former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan. Unlike Jamal, Naseem hasn’t been let off the hook. PCB has fined him a whopping PKR 2 crore (approximately INR 68 lakh), the biggest fine in Pakistan cricket’s history.
For context, Naseem earns PKR 3 crore yearly. Which means he’s been fined approximately 8 months of his central contract by the PCB. The fast bowler accepted the fine and stated that his management compact was responsible for the post, not him.
“A recent post from my account was made by my management team and does not reflect my views. I take full responsibility for my platform and have implemented the necessary changes to ensure this does not happen again. I sincerely apologise to everyone affected by this misuse of my platform,” Naseem wrote on X.
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