File Picture Courtesy : Deccan Chronicle
The BCCI has announced its new annual contracts for the men in blue. And this time it has introduced a new category A+. It features those players who play in all formats . And this elite list of ( Rs 7 cr) includes : Skipper Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and Shikhar Dhawan
Former Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni , Ravichandran Ashwin have been bracketed in the A category ( Rs 5 cr) along with Ravindra Jadeja, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane and Wridhhiman Saha.
It is reported that Dhoni had given nod to the proposed four tier contract system thereby ending all speculations of him been snubbed . Dhoni had retired from Tests and plays only the 50 over and the T20 formats.
The B category ( Rs 3 cr) players include : KL Rahul, Umesh Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Hardik Pandya, Ishant Sharma and Dinesh Karthik.
In Grade C ( Rs 1 cr) will consist players like : Kedar Jadhav, Manish Pandey, Axar Patel, Karun Nair, Suresh Raina, Parthiv Patel and Jayant Yadav.
The annual contracts are for the period from October 2017 to September 2018.
“The Committee of Administrators (CoA) was of the view that the performance and position of Indian Cricket needs to be recognised with the fee structure comparable to the best in the world,” the BCCI said in a statement.
Meanhwile, Indian pacer Mohammed Shami’s central contract was withheld by the BCCI after his wife accused him of domestic violence and adultery, charges that were denied by the cricketer.
“The BCCI has taken cognisance of all the reports emerging about Mohammed Shami’s personal life. It is purely a personal matter and the BCCI has nothing to do with it. However, keeping in mind that the woman in question has met the police commissioner of Kolkata, it is only prudent on BCCI’s part to wait for any official inquiry to take place,” the official said.
Among the women, nine cricketers who were chosen :
Grade A (Rs 50 lakh each): Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana
Grade B (Rs 30 lakh each): Poonam Yadav, Veda Krishnamurthy, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Ekta Bisht and Shikha Pandey
“The CoA recognises that the actual income of the BCCI fluctuates on an annual basis depending on the number of home matches Team India (Senior Men) plays.
“Hence, to insulate the player compensation, the CoA has sanctioned the creation of a ‘Players Revenue/Compensation Equalisation Fund’ (PR/CEF) to which the BCCI will contribute approximately Rs 125 crore per annum from its surplus,” the BCCI statement read.
