PCB issues show cause notices to five Pakistan players

Karachi: Pakistani cricket authorities have issued show cause notices to five national team players, including senior all-rounder Shahid Afridi, for taking part in a commercial without PCB's permission.

The other players include pacers Mohammad Irfan, Wahab Riaz, Anwar Ali and Fawad Alam.

A spokesman of the board said the show cause notices were issued as the players had violated the terms of their central contracts that clearly state they could not participate in any commercial activity without permission of the board.

"This clause is firm since it pertains to conflict of interests where the sponsorship and corporate agreements of the board arise," he said.

Interestingly Afridi, who is now captain of the national T20 team, announced yesterday that he would retire from one-day internationals after the 2015 World Cup.

The five players appeared in an advertisement for Haier, the title sponsors for the home series against Australia and New Zealand, which were played in the UAE.

An official of the board said that Haier was only title sponsors of the series and domestic cricket but players had to seek clearance to promote their products.

The official said the board would wait for seven days for their explanations and then decide on the future course of action.