Pakistan Stars Stuck at the Airport as PCB Holds Nepal League NOCs

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The PCB hasn't issued NOCs for the Nepal Premier League, leaving Pakistan's T20 stars in limbo. Some already had clearance and were told to wait. A reported $25,000 fee per player is adding to the confusion.

The Nepal Premier League is supposed to start on Monday. But as things stand, a whole crew of Pakistan's biggest T20 names might not make it to Kathmandu at all. The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) hasn't issued the no-objection certificates (NOCs) these players need to compete, and even guys who already had their paperwork sorted have been told to sit tight. Translation? Permission is on hold, and nobody's saying for how long. ### What's Actually Going On According to reporting from Cricinfo, people close to the tournament confirmed the PCB has paused clearances, including for players who'd already been given the green light. The league runs from October 26 to November 21, with eight teams battling it out in Kathmandu. So where are the players? Some have already landed in Nepal's capital. Others were packed and ready to fly but hit pause on their travel plans until the board makes up its mind. The PCB didn't respond to requests for comment on the delay. Here's the thing that makes this extra awkward: none of these players are on a Pakistan squad that overlaps with the league dates. There's no international commitment standing in the way. On paper, they should be free to play. ### The $25,000 Question People associated with the NPL say the PCB wanted a fee in exchange for issuing the certificates. The figure being floated? Around **$25,000 per Pakistan player**. Now, before you run with that, let's be clear: there's no written confirmation of any such demand, and it's not even certain the fee is the real sticking point. Neither the board nor the league has said a word publicly. So take the number with a healthy grain of salt. ### Who's Waiting on the Call The Pakistan contingent is no joke. It includes T20 captain Sahibzada Farhan, who smashed 76 against Sri Lanka in the third T20I in Rawalpindi on October 13. Alongside him are Haider Ali, Hunain Shah, Hussain Talat, Iftikhar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, and Usama Mir. That's a serious lineup, and teams that signed these players are now stuck waiting before they can finalize their squads. ### The Contract Twist Earlier this year, the PCB rolled out a new central contract system that splits white-ball and red-ball cricket. One category, called format track D, is built for T20 specialists. Under that setup, players can feature in as many T20 leagues as they want, as long as the tournaments don't clash with international duty the board requires. Sounds reasonable, right? Here's the catch: the PCB hasn't publicly said which track each player falls under, or even confirmed whether the new structure is officially in effect. And none of the NPL-bound players currently figure in Pakistan's ODI or Test plans, which makes the whole holdup even harder to explain. > "The tournament starts on Monday, and the availability of the Pakistan players depends on whether the PCB issues the certificates in time." That's the bottom line. The clock is ticking, teams are waiting, and players are caught in the middle. Whether the NOCs drop in time or the whole thing falls apart is anyone's guess right now. One thing's for sure: this story isn't over yet.

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