Sometimes when an unprecedented move is made, other factors tend to be overshadowed. On Wednesday, when the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the Indian men’s central contracts for the 2023-2024 season, the exclusion of Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan became the cynosure. The BCCI officials did not consider the two batting stars after they repeatedly ignored their warnings over non-participation in the ongoing Ranji Trophy season. Although Iyer later made himself available for Ranji Trophy semifinal on Saturday, while Ishan returned to cricket after a mental-health break in a domestic T20 league in Mumbai, their acts seemed too late.
Amid the debate and discussion around Iyer, Ishan, their possible way of returning to the Indian team and making it back to the BCCI central contract list, there were some notable gainers from the annual retainership. A total of 30 players have been handed a fresh contract, four more than last season, with BCCI also announcing a brand-new fast bowling contract.
Which players earned a promotion?
Fast bowler Mohammed Siraj, and batters KL Rahul and Shubman Gill have been promoted from Grade B in the 2022/23 contract to A in 2023/24, which implies that the trio will now earn INR 5 Crore compared to INR 3 crore from previous season. Leg-spinner Kuldeep Yadav too earned a promotion, as he has been moved into Grade B from C, implying that he will earn INR 3 crore compared to INR 1 crore last season. However, the player to have earned the biggest promotion has been Yashasvi Jaiswal, who has been sensational in the ongoing Test series against England and has been in ravishing form since his international debut last year in July. Having not been in the central contract last season, the left-handed opener has been included in Grade B.
Players who have been newly added to BCCI contract list
Besides Jaiswal, 10 other players have been freshly included in BCCI’s annual contract list with the likes of Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi, Jitesh Sharma, Mukesh Kumar, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan and Rajat Patidar being named in Grade C, where players will earn INR 1 crore.
The fast-bowling contract
Besides the unprecedented act pertaining to Iyer and Ishan, BCCI made another striking move, which earned lot of applause from experts and veterans as five cricketers – Akash Deep, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Umran Malik, Yash Dayal and Vidwath Kaverappa – were handed a fast-bowling contract.
Akash made his debut in the Ranchi Test against England where he picked up three wickets with the new ball in the first hour of the match. Umran, meanwhile, made his debut in June 2022 after having impressed with his raw pace, but did not make an appearance for India in the last seven months. Vyshak, Dayal and Kaverappa, on the other hand, are all yet to make their India debut.
