The Indian Cricket Board on Wednesday evening released the list of annual contracts for 30 players, but Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan did not find a place in this list.
It is believed that middle order batsman Shreyas Iyer and wicketkeeper batsman Ishan Kishan have been left out of the list as punishment for not participating in domestic Ranji Trophy matches.
However, on the other hand, players like Avesh Khan and Rajat Patidar, who participated in only a few matches, have been included in the list.
According to media reports, Shreyas Iyer had informed Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) that he will not be able to participate in Ranji matches due to a strain in his back muscles.
He was dropped from the team after the second Test match against England and it was expected that after that he would participate in Ranji matches for the Mumbai team.
However, Nitin Patel, head of the Sports Science Department of the National Cricket Academy, dismissed the reason for Shreyas’s back problem.
Due to this, Shreyas Iyer was forced to declare himself available for the semi-final match against Tamil Nadu to be held from March 2.
But by then his losses had already been incurred, he was out of the list of annual contracts.
The case of 25 year old Ishan Kishan is also very similar to that of Shreyas Iyer.
Last year, BCCI placed him in C grade in the annual contract. During that contract, he played two Tests, 19 ODIs and 10 T20 matches for India. But despite being on continuous tour with the team in the current season, he got a chance to play only two ODIs and three T20 matches.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Ishan could not even go on the tour of South Africa for two Test matches in December-January. At that time it was said that ‘he is mentally tired due to continuous travelling.’
But contrary to his claims, it seemed that he was more interested in preparing for the IPL rather than playing Test matches.
This was the situation when the team’s head coach Rahul Dravid advised him to participate in five-day cricket matches before returning to the national team.
Despite Rahul Dravid’s advice, Ishan Kishan skipped the Ranji matches and reached Baroda for IPL practice with the Pandya brothers.
He once again angered the top BCCI officials on 27 February when he went to play in a private tournament held at DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai. The result of all this is now in front of everyone.
BCCI has clearly said in its statement, “Please note that the names of Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan have not been considered for the contract list this year.”
In this statement, players have also been advised to give priority to domestic cricket matches if they are out of the national team.
Only last week, senior Bengal player Manoj Tiwari, in his farewell speech, had accused BCCI of neglecting domestic cricket.
In such a situation, it is being said that BCCI has given a strict message by taking immediate action against the players who neglect domestic cricket.
After the Ranchi Test, India captain Rohit Sharma indirectly targeted players like Ishan and Shreyas and said that ‘players who do not have the hunger to play Test cricket will not be selected.’
Senior Bengal cricketer Manoj Tiwari is so disappointed with BCCI over the management of Ranji matches that he has even suggested to stop it from the next season.
Manoj Tiwari, while expressing his views on social media, has said that there are many aspects related to Ranji Trophy, where work is not being done properly. Due to this the prestige and importance of the tournament is decreasing.
After Manoj Tiwari’s demand to stop Ranji Trophy, a round of discussions started regarding domestic cricket.
After his statement, discussions have started on various reforms to maintain the importance of this tournament.
There is talk of improving the facilities and standard of domestic cricket so that new talents can be preserved and nurtured. Manoj Tiwari has also expressed concern about the facilities and level of facilities provided to domestic cricketers.
However, domestic cricket watchers have noticed that in the last 10-15 years, all the top players in India have started ignoring Ranji matches so that they can keep themselves fresh, fit and available for the IPL matches.
It is also interesting to note here that the BCCI has had a policy for a long time, according to which players who are out of international cricket due to injury or other reasons are required to play in first-class (tournaments like Ranji or Iran Trophy) to prove their match fitness for their comeback. ) Have to participate in the match.
This policy continued to be followed until Dilip Vengsarkar became the chief selector of the Indian team.
But after 2008, players started being selected in the team on the basis of IPL performance, in such a situation all the players started giving priority to IPL, which is why many players did not participate in Ranji Trophy matches for a long time.
But this latest decision of BCCI has definitely sent a message that giving priority to IPL over Test or domestic cricket can lead to losses.
Promotion to Rahul, Siraj and Shubman
BCCI has retained Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja in the top category (Grade A Plus) in its annual contracts.
Whereas Mohammad Siraj, KL Rahul and Shubman Gill have been included in Grade A.
These players have been promoted from Grade B to Grade A. Whereas Hardik Pandya remains in Grade A despite not being available for Test cricket.
Pandya led the Indian team in 11 T20 matches in 2023. He was being seen as the successor to Rohit Sharma in Test and ODI cricket, but he got injured during the World Cup and all his possibilities were put on hold for the time being.
Rishabh Pant, who was seriously injured in a car accident in December 2022, could not make his return to the field last year.
Along with Axar Patel, Rishabh Pant has been demoted from Grade A to Grade B.
Whereas Suryakumar Yadav has led the Indian team in eight T20 matches in 2023-24. They remain in B grade.
Yashasvi Jaiswal, who made a great debut last year, also managed to get promoted in B grade. Apart from him, Kuldeep Yadav has also got B grade contract.
What are the signs for Pujara and Shikhar Dhawan?
Cheteshwar Pujara and Shikhar Dhawan have been left out of BCCI’s annual contract list, it is believed that it will not be possible for both of them to return to the team.
Apart from these, leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, all-rounder Deepak Hooda and fast bowler Umesh Yadav have also been kept out of the contract list.
According to the provisions of BCCI, if a cricketer plays a minimum of three Test matches, eight ODIs or 10 T20 matches within a stipulated time, then he gets a place in Grade C.
That means, if Dhruv Jurail and Sarfaraz Khan get a chance to play in the Dharamshala Test starting from March 7, then they will automatically be part of C grade.
BCCI has issued separate contracts for young fast bowlers like Akash Deep, Vijaykumar Vaikhak, Umran Malik, Yash Dayal and Vidhwat Kawerappa.
Akash Deep made a brilliant debut in the Ranchi Test against England. The speculation is that BCCI is providing financial help to these fast bowlers in the name of contracts so that they can improve themselves in a better way.
BCCI has released the contract list, but has not given any information regarding the payment of each grade.
If reliable sources related to the board are to be believed, this will be more than last year’s payment.
Last year, Grade A Plus players were given Rs 7 crore, Grade A players were given Rs 5 crore, Grade B players were given Rs 3 crore and Grade C players were given Rs 1 crore annually.
bcci contract list
Grade A+ (four players)
Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja
Grade A (six players)
Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill and Hardik Pandya.
Grade B (five players)
Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Kuldeep Yadav, Akshar Patel and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Grade C (fifteen players)
Rinku Singh, Tilak Verma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shardul Thakur, Shivam Dubey, Ravi Bishnoi, Jitesh Sharma, Washington Sundar, Mukesh Kumar, Sanju Samson, Arshdeep Singh, KS Bharat, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan and Rajat Patidar.