Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma face downgrade as BCCI considers new contract structure
T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer were included in Grade B.
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The Board of Control for Cricket in India is planning a major overhaul of its central contracts system, with proposals to discontinue the top-tier grades and restructure player categories, a move that could see senior India batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma placed in a lower bracket, according to BCCI sources, reported by ANI.
The revised model, proposed by the national selection committee headed by Ajit Agarkar, recommends scrapping the A+ category and retaining only three grades—A, B and C—according to an ANI report. The proposal also includes doing away with the existing Grade A category, leaving three reworked slabs under the new framework. Further clarity on the revised financial structure and whether the board will approve the changes is expected at the next BCCI apex council meeting.
If the new system is cleared, Kohli and Rohit, who are currently exclusive one-day international players, are likely to be placed in Category B under the revised contract structure, the report said.
At present, BCCI central contracts are annual retainers awarded to Indian cricketers across four grades—A+, A, B and C—with fixed retainers of Rs 7 crore, Rs 5 crore, Rs 3 crore and Rs 1 crore respectively, in addition to match fees.
Under the 2024–25 central contracts list announced in April 2025, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja and fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah were placed in the A+ category. Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, India men’s ODI and Test captain Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami and Rishabh Pant featured in Grade A.
T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer were included in Grade B.
Grade C comprised Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, Mukesh Kumar, Sanju Samson, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Rajat Patidar, Dhruv Jurel, Sarfaraz Khan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ishan Kishan, Abhishek Sharma, Akash Deep, Varun Chakaravarthy and Harshit Rana.
The proposed restructuring marks one of the most significant changes to the BCCI’s central contracts system in recent years, reflecting the board’s evolving approach to player formats, workload and long-term planning.
