Karachi: Some members of the newly-constituted governing body of the Pakistan Cricket Board want caps on members of the national team and selection committee who are writing columns or appearing on television channels.

"When the Indian cricket board does not allow its players and selectors to earn money from writing columns or doing exclusive talk shows on television, why is our board being so lenient with our players. We feel these things are a distraction and affected the performance of the team in India," a senior member of the governing body told PTI today.

The governing body has been constituted under the new constitution of the board and includes former Test players, representatives of affiliated regional associations, departments and some technocrats.

Another member said definitely this issue would be discussed when the governing body held its next meeting. "In the past the board didn't allow such practices because the players are already paid well and earn through sponsorship endorsements. So why do they want to get involved in media commitments which can affect their performances," he claimed.

An official of the board, however, said permission had been given to some players to write columns and do television shows but under specific guidelines. "They can't criticise the board or their teammates or officials and they have to ensure they don't run down the image of Pakistan cricket," he said.

On the current tour of India, several Pakistani players including captain Shoaib Malik are writing columns for newspapers and some have also signed up with Indian agents to do television appearances.

Source : PTI