The increasing value of the US dollar is causing financial losses for franchises participating in the upcoming HBL Pakistan Super League (PSL) season eight.
According to a team official, Pakistan players are being paid in dollars at a rate of 225 rupees per dollar on the day of the draft, which is causing a significant financial burden for the teams.
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The official also stated that there is no logical reason for paying Pakistan players in dollars, and that the franchise owners have spoken to the head of the PCB management committee Najam Sethi, about the issue but no resolution has been reached yet.
It is worth noting that Pakistani players typically receive 70% of their earnings upfront, with the remaining 30% being paid after the event.
However, the first payment for the seventh edition was made several days after the tournament had already begun. With the Pakistan rupee experiencing historical depreciation in recent years, the rate of the dollar has been continuously increasing.
This has had a direct impact on the cricket industry, with the cost of the PSL increasing for franchises as a result.
However, the franchises are facing losses, in PSL, platinum cricketers' fees are between 170,000 and 130,000 dollars, diamond 85,000 to 60,000 and gold 50,000 to 40,000 dollars, silver players 25,000 to 15,000 while emerging players will receive 7 thousand dollars, in 2021, except for foreign cricketers and production, other payments were made in rupees, but last year PCB introduced dollars again, the Pakistan rupee is suffering from historical depreciation these days.
The rate has exceeded 262 till yesterday, the PSL franchises are obliged to pay the players in dollars, this year the rate will be 225 on the day of the draft on December 15, a team official said in this regard.
Foreign players are understandable, if Pakistani cricketers are paid in dollars, there is no logic. Last year we told the board a lot but they did not agree. However, it is the PCB's job to resolve this issue
This year our expenses will increase by 30% due to the dollar, he said that the franchise owners had spoken to the head of the management committee, Najam Sethi, but no decision could be made due to lack of time.
The system will be made, it should be noted that the payment to Pakistani players is done by converting dollars to rupees, 70% of the money is received first and the remaining 30% after the event, however, the first payment of the seventh edition was made several days after the tournament started.
In February this year, the dollar rate was more than 175, in the eighth edition, it was 225 on December 15, the day of the draft, which means an increase of 50 rupees.
In the 7th edition, if a platinum cricketer was paid Rs 3 crore, now he has to pay an additional Rs 82 lakh.
When contacted in this regard, a PCB official said that we also agree that Pakistan cricketers should be paid in rupees, but since this was the decision of the previous administration, we cannot do anything at the moment. It will definitely be considered.
According to the details, the eighth edition of the Pakistan Super League will start from February 13 in Multan. For the past few years, the rate of the dollar has been increasing continuously in the country, and its impact has also started to affect cricket.
There will be no shortage of dollars in the event, an assurance has been taken from the government in this regard.