The Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) has renewed and announced the central contracts 2021-22 on Thursday. Two vital cogs of the team, Shikar Dhawan and Hardik Pandya have suffered the biggest slides dropping down. Also, the senior players Ishant Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, and Cheteshwar Pujara have dealt with hefty blows. On the contrary, Axar Patel, Shreyas Iyer, and Mohammad Siraj have levelled up.
Before mentioning the grades of several players in BCCI Central Contracts 2021-22, it must be noted that the cricketers in Grade A+ will be earning INR 7 Crore, those named in Grade A will earn INR 5 Crore. Whereas, the players placed in Grade B and Grade C will be making INR 3 and 1 Crores respectively.
There are no fresh additions in Grade A since the names of Virat Kohli, the new captain Rohit Sharma, and the base bowler Jasprit Bumrah are once again retained. Pandya and Dhawan have been dropped from Grade A to Grade C, which means, they will be getting less 4 Crores. In recent times, Dhawan is usually seen as preferred in 50-over cricket since BCCI rarely opts for him in the other formats. Hardik, however, has not been able to bowl for a span of more than one year.
No player has been moved up two places, but Iyer, Patel, and Siraj have jumped from Grade C to B and will earn INR 3 Crore. Kuldeep Yadav and Navdeep Saini have not been retained in the Central Contracts 2021-22. As far as Ishant, Rahane, and Pujara are considered, the BCCI says it does not want to close gates on the seniors and has given them one more chance. The trio has been demoted to Grade D.
Also, see:
Get your tickets for Pakistan vs India World Cup 2022 here
