The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) became embroiled in controversy after an alleged private WhatsApp conversation between Pakistan captain Babar Azam and a senior PCB official was aired on live TV.

The controversy began when former Pakistan cricketer, Rashid Latif, claimed on a local channel that Babar had attempted to contact key PCB figures, including Zaka Ashraf, Salman Naseer, and Usman Wahla, but received no response for two days.

In an attempt to counter Latif’s claims, the PCB chief Ashraf shared a WhatsApp conversation between Babar Azam and PCB’s Chief Operating Officer, Salman Naseer, with a sports journalist. In the exchange, Naseer questioned Babar about rumors regarding unsuccessful attempts to contact the chairman, to which Babar refuted making any calls.

The controversy escalated when a private news channel aired a screenshot of the chat, allegedly with permission from Zaka Ashraf, though the PCB distanced itself, stating it had no control over the channel’s editorial policy.

“It is a channel’s discretion and policy to determine what or what not to air. PCB has no say or control on channel’s editorial policy,” PCB was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.

The unfolding events have resulted in a trust deficit between the national team players and the PCB COO.

Furthermore, according to a local media report, Babar Azam is displeased with the leak, expressing concerns that his private conversations on sensitive matters could be leaked to the media in the future.