LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has enforced a stringent new security policy for players participating in the ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2026, following a high-profile breach of protocols involving Lahore Qalandars captain Shaheen Shah Afridi and teammate Sikandar Raza.
Under the revised directives, players are strictly prohibited from hosting guests in their rooms, with an exception made exclusively for immediate family members. Even for such visits, players are now required to provide a mandatory twenty-four-hour prior notice to team management and security officials. Any meetings with other guests must now take place in designated public or business areas of the hotel, and only after receiving formal clearance.
This immediate tightening of regulations serves as a direct response to a late-night incident on March 28, the eve of a crucial PSL fixture.
According to an official letter sent by the Punjab Police to the cricket board, the team’s liaison officer had twice requested permission for four visitors to meet Raza in his room at the Pearl Continental Hotel. Despite the PCB’s Security and Anti-Corruption Manager and PSL CEO Salman Naseer denying these requests on security grounds, the players allegedly bypassed on-duty security staff and forcefully escorted the visitors to a room on the eighth floor. The guests remained on the premises for over two hours, a move law enforcement has characterized as a serious compromise of the established security framework designed to protect the tournament’s integrity.
The incident has exposed significant gaps in the existing system, though the players involved have suggested the breach was a result of a misunderstanding rather than malice. Sikandar Raza later explained that in previous seasons of the league, players were generally permitted to host family and friends within the hotel so long as they did not leave the premises. He noted that neither he nor Shaheen were fully aware that the standard operating procedures had been tightened for the current edition. Raza has since taken full responsibility for the lapse, stating that he sought the captain’s help to avoid meeting his long-time associates in public areas, unaware of the gravity of the violation.
The PCB and provincial authorities have signaled that the era of leniency regarding hotel protocols has ended. With the PSL 2026 currently being played behind closed doors amid regional tensions and logistical challenges, the board is determined to maintain a sterile, bio-secure environment.
