BCCI Central Contracts Shakeup: Kohli and Sharma Face Potential Demotion

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is set to introduce a revised central contract system, under which the Grade A category will be discontinued. If the new model is approved by the board, Team India veterans Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are expected to be placed in Grade B, according to BCCI sources. The selection committee, headed by Ajit Agarkar, has proposed changes to the central contract structure. The committee has recommended scrapping the A+ category (Rs 7 crore) and leaving only three categories: A, B, and C. Further clarity on the monetary changes and whether the BCCI will approve this new model is expected at the next apex council meeting. If the proposed model is approved, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, who are currently exclusive ODI players, are likely to be placed in Category B. BCCI Central Contracts are annual retainers awarded to Indian cricketers, categorised into A+ , A, B, and C grades, with substantial yearly fees (Rs 7 crore for A+, Rs 5 crore for A, Rs 3 crore for B, and Rs 1 crore for C) in addition to match fees. The 2024-25 list, announced in April 2025, features Rohit, Virat, Ravindra Jadeja, and Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah in A+, while Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, Team India Men's ODI and Test captain Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami and Rishabh Pant are placed in Grade A. T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Shreyas Iyer find themselves in Grade B. Grade C includes: Rinku Singh, Tilak Verma, 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.