PCB issues show-cause notice to Fakhar Zaman

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has issued a show-cause notice to opening batter Fakhar Zaman over his post about star batter Babar Azam.

The PCB has sought the explosive batter to respond to the notice by October 21 after finding him of breaching the Code of Conduct.

The notice came a day after Fakhar Zaman criticised the decision to drop Babar Azam from the Pakistan squad for the remaining two Tests against England.

On Sunday, the newly appointed selection committee announced the squad for the remaining two Test games against England.

“Taking into consideration the current form and fitness of key players and looking ahead to Pakistan’s future assignments in the 2024-25 international cricket season, the selectors have decided to give rest to Babar Azam, Naseem Shah, Sarfaraz Ahmed and Shaheen Shah Afridi. Abrar Ahmed (who is recovering from dengue fever) was unavailable for selection,” the PCB statement said.

Reacting to the announcement of the squad, the left-handed batter urged to focus on safeguarding key players rather than undermining them.

“It’s concerning to hear suggestions about dropping Babar Azam. India didn’t bench Virat Kohli during his rough stretch between 2020 and 2023, when he averaged 19.33, 28.21, and 26.50, respectively,” Zaman wrote in a post on X.

“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,” he added.

Meanwhile, Pakistan are set to face England in the second Test in Multan on October 15 after the visitors won the first game by an inning and 47 runs.