The Board of Control for Cricket in India have announced the Annual Player Contracts for Team India (Senior Men) for the period from October 2020 to September 2021.
According to the BCCI press release, the payment structure is divided into four categories:
- Grade A+ contract earning players INR 7 crore
- Grade A – INR 5 crore.
- Grade B – INR 3 crore
- Grade C – INR 1 crore.
India’s all-rounder Hardik Pandya gets a promotion from Grade B to Grade A. Hardik Pandya couldn’t bowl for the majority of the period. He has had to earn his place in India’s limited overs set-up as a pure batsman. Hardik has done just that with terrific performances in the ODI series in Australia and in India against the world champions, England.
Hardik was India’s highest run-getter in the ODI series against Australia with 210 runs in 3 innings at a strike rate of 114.75, including an unbeaten 92. He also played a crucial knock of 22-ball-42 which helped India defeat Australia by six wickets in the second T20I. In the ODI series against England at home, Pandya scored two blistering knocks of 64 off 44 and 35 off 16. Hardik’s rise has been rapid, and he’s now one of India’s most important players in limited overs cricket. His promotion to the Grade A is a great acknowledgement of that.
India spin twins Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal have slipped down in the pecking order of the annual contracts list. The duo wreaked havoc in the middle overs phase in white ball cricket for two years but have looked toothless of late. The Chinaman, Kuldeep Yadav has had a torturous year, as he remained an unutilised player of India’s victorious squad in Australia. Kuldeep’s performance has dropped significantly, and he finds himself out of playing xi more often than not. Kuldeep Yadav has slipped from Grade A contract to Grade C.
Yuzvendra Chahal’s recent form has been worrying, and he has been demoted from Grade A contract to Grade B. Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s long injury layoff, and the emergence of many fast bowlers has resulted in Kumar getting demoted to Grade B.
Shardul Thakur, who surprised everyone with his performances in India’s historic win in Australia and against England at home, earned a promotion from Grade C to Grade B. Shubman Gill and Mohammed Siraj, who were other heroes in that Australia tour, have also been awarded Grade C contracts. Axar Patel, who had an incredible series against England in the absence of Jadeja, also received a Grade C contract. Axar Patel picked 27 wickets in 3 matches at an average of 10.59.
Manish Pandey and Kedar Jadhav, the two Grade C limited overs players, have not been retained.
A total of 28 cricketers were given central contracts in four categories. Captain Virat Kohli, vice-captain Rohit Sharma, and fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah were three players retained in the A+ category.
Full list of India’s Annual Players Contracts
Grade A+ (INR 7cr): Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah.
Grade A (INR 5cr): R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Mohammed Shami, Ishant Sharma, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya.
Grade B (INR 3cr): Wriddhiman Saha, Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshar Kumar, Shardul Thakur, Mayank Agarwal.
Grade C (INR 1cr): Kuldeep Yadav, Navdeep Saini, Deepak Chahar, Shubman Gill, Hanuma Vihari, Axar Patel, Shreyas Iyer, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj.
