Pakistan players ask PCB to increase match fee in new contracts

Pakistan Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq and a few other senior players have told the Pakistan Cricket Board to increase their match fee for all three formats in the new central contracts, to be issued by the board for the year 2015.

A Board official told PTI that the PCB had decided to give 10 per cent raise to the players in their monthly retainers in the new contracts, but some senior players have demanded a raise in the match fess for Tests, ODIs and T20.

“They will get a 10 per cent raise but Misbah on behalf of the players has told the PCB it should also raise the match fees for Tests, ODIs and T20,” said the official.

“Misbah has pointed out that the players needed to be given a substantial raise since in the last few years they have not got big raises in their match fees and also due to the rising inflation,” the official said.

Chief selector Haroon Rasheed is heading the committee, which has finalised the list of cricketers to be given the new central contracts.

The official said it was highly unlikely that the players would get raises in their match fees since the performance of the team has not been up to the mark since last year.

“The board has told Misbah that it will finalise the central contracts list on basis of performance and fitness reports and in both counts the players have not delivered consistently,” the official informed.

After the central contracts for 2014 expired last December, the PCB had issued temporary three-month central contracts to the players just as they left for the World Cup.

But the players, after reaching New Zealand, had rejected the temporary contracts and returned them unsigned to the team manager and demanded proper annual contracts.

“The new contracts will be for a 12-month period for 2015 and some established players should expect themselves to be dropped or demoted,” the official stated.