Pakistan demoted former captains Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan on Tuesday (Ausg 19) in a contract review that scrapped the top category after a string of poor recent results. There are now no players in the top category A for the first time since the system of central contracts was introduced 21 years ago. Azam and Rizwan have both been demoted to category B contracts, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said.&nbsp;"We have awarded central contracts to 30 players with 10 each placed in B, C and D. Notably, no player has been selected in category A in this cycle," the PCB said in a media release, without giving any reason.&nbsp;Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/india-asia-cup-squad-shubman-gill-returns-to-t20i-side-as-bcci-announce-15-man-team-check-details-inside-shreyas-iyer-1755595700460">India Asia Cup 2025 Squad Announcement: Shubman Gill returns, Iyer dropped as BCCI name 15-man team</a>&nbsp;Azam and Rizwan are the biggest names in Pakistan cricket but poor performances in the past 12 months saw them lose their places in the Twenty20 international squads announced for a tri-series and the Asia Cup.&nbsp;Joining Rizwan and Azam in category B are T20I captain Salman Agha, Fakhar Zaman, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi.&nbsp;The national team's recent performances in all three formats of the game have fallen badly.&nbsp;Pakistan beat England in a home Test series 2-1 last year but then lost 2-0 in South Africa and drew 1-1 at home against a lowly West Indies, finishing 10th and last in the World Test Championship.&nbsp;The slump has also resulted in Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood being demoted from category B to D.&nbsp;Pakistan won their first one-day international series in Australia for 22 years in November and routed South Africa 3-0 but then crashed out in the first round of the Champions trophy, an event they co-hosted with Dubai.&nbsp;They also crashed out of last year's Twenty20 World Cup in the first round and lost a recent Twenty20 international series in Bangladesh 2-1.&nbsp;The tri-series, also involving Afghanistan and the United Arab Emirates, starts from August 29 in Sharjah, followed by the Asia Cup in Dubai.&nbsp;Disclaimer: This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits to adhere to WION's style guide. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for WION audience.

The two superstars are demoted to the B category, with no player in the elite A category, the PCB announced. 

Pakistan demoted former captains Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan on Tuesday (Ausg 19) in a contract review that scrapped the top category after a string of poor recent results. There are now no players in the top category A for the first time since the system of central contracts was introduced 21 years ago. Azam and Rizwan have both been demoted to category B contracts, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said. "We have awarded central contracts to 30 players with 10 each placed in B, C and D. Notably, no player has been selected in category A in this cycle," the PCB said in a media release, without giving any reason. Also read | India Asia Cup 2025 Squad Announcement: Shubman Gill returns, Iyer dropped as BCCI name 15-man team Azam and Rizwan are the biggest names in Pakistan cricket but poor performances in the past 12 months saw them lose their places in the Twenty20 international squads announced for a tri-series and the Asia Cup. Joining Rizwan and Azam in category B are T20I captain Salman Agha, Fakhar Zaman, Abrar Ahmed, Haris Rauf, Hasan Ali, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan and Shaheen Shah Afridi. The national team's recent performances in all three formats of the game have fallen badly. Pakistan beat England in a home Test series 2-1 last year but then lost 2-0 in South Africa and drew 1-1 at home against a lowly West Indies, finishing 10th and last in the World Test Championship. The slump has also resulted in Pakistan Test captain Shan Masood being demoted from category B to D. Pakistan won their first one-day international series in Australia for 22 years in November and routed South Africa 3-0 but then crashed out in the first round of the Champions trophy, an event they co-hosted with Dubai. They also crashed out of last year's Twenty20 World Cup in the first round and lost a recent Twenty20 international series in Bangladesh 2-1. The tri-series, also involving Afghanistan and the United Arab Emirates, starts from August 29 in Sharjah, followed by the Asia Cup in Dubai. Disclaimer: This story has been published from a news agency feed with minimal edits to adhere to WION's style guide. The headline may have been changed to better reflect the content of the story or to make it more suitable for WION audience.

The two superstars are demoted to the B category, with no player in the elite A category, the PCB announced.&nbsp;

Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan demoted in PCB contract review after Asia Cup snub

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Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan demoted in PCB contract review after Asia Cup snub