PCB introduces new one-day tournament ahead of 2027 ODI World Cup, revamps domestic structure
The board has also made several structural changes to its domestic competitions, including expanding the number of regional teams and revamping the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.
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The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has announced a revamped domestic calendar for the 2026-27 season, introducing a new four-team one-day tournament to strengthen the country's preparations for the 2027 ICC Men's ODI World Cup. The board has also made several structural changes to its domestic competitions, including expanding the number of regional teams and revamping the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.
The domestic season will get underway on August 11 in Multan with the inaugural National Champions Cup, a week-long List A tournament featuring four teams selected by the national selection committee. The competition has been specifically introduced to assess the country's one-day talent pool ahead of next year's global event.
The National Champions Cup will be the first of two 50-over tournaments scheduled this season. It will be followed by the President's Cup, the departmental one-day competition, which is set to begin three days after the conclusion of the National Champions Cup.
Notably, Pakistan had only one domestic List A tournament over the past two seasons after the PCB discontinued the Pakistan Cup, the regional one-day competition, following the 2023-24 season. Earlier, both regional and departmental teams competed in separate 50-over tournaments.
Speaking about the decision, PCB Senior General Manager of Domestic Cricket Operations Osama Sharoon said the domestic calendar has been designed with the national team's World Cup preparations in mind.
"This year the focus has been pinned on Pakistan men's team's preparations for the Cricket World Cup and for that the Domestic Cricket Operations Department has strategically arranged two List-A tournaments to start the season. With a number of top-quality national and emerging stars appearing this year in the various domestic tournaments, the fans will surely enjoy the coming season and our cricketers will develop by leaps and bounds," Osama Sharoon was quoted as saying by Cricinfo.
The PCB has also expanded its regional domestic structure from 18 teams to 20, with Sialkot and Peshawar now permitted to field two teams each. The two regions join Lahore and Karachi as the only regional associations with multiple teams in domestic competitions. They will also field two teams each in age-group tournaments.
Meanwhile, the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy has undergone another major overhaul. The premier first-class competition will now feature all 16 regions and will be divided into Gold and Silver divisions. Both divisions are scheduled to begin simultaneously on November 1.
The Gold Division will consist of the top eight teams, while the remaining 12 sides, including the newly added teams from Sialkot and Peshawar, will compete in the Silver Division.
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This marks the third consecutive season in which the PCB has altered the structure of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy. The tournament featured 10 teams in the 2025-26 season, while all 18 regional teams participated during the 2024-25 campaign. The latest changes reflect the board's continued efforts to strengthen Pakistan's domestic pathway while creating a larger talent pool for the national team ahead of major international assignments.
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