New Delhi, April 21 – The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Monday released the list of centrally contracted players for the upcoming season, with Indian Test and ODI captain Rohit Sharma and senior batter Virat Kohli retaining their positions in the top A+ category. The category also includes all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, all of whom will receive an annual retainer fee of ₹7 crore.
As per agency report, a total of 34 players have been awarded contracts this season. Among notable developments, Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan have returned to the central contract list. Iyer, who had been excluded in the previous cycle reportedly for prioritizing IPL over domestic cricket, has been placed in Group B with a retainer of ₹3 crore. Kishan, who faced similar consequences last season, has returned in the C category with an annual fee of ₹1 crore.
Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant, who was moved to Group B in the 2023–24 cycle, has now been reinstated to Group A following the retirement of Ravichandran Ashwin. Players in this grade receive ₹5 crore annually.
The C category, comprising the largest group with 19 players, includes four new additions: Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy, Abhishek Sharma, and Nitish Kumar Reddy. This tier typically includes emerging talent and players on the periphery of the national setup.
Here is the breakdown of BCCI’s 2025–26 central contracts:
Grade A+ (₹7 crore): Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja
Grade A (₹5 crore): Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami, Rishabh Pant
Grade B (₹3 crore): Suryakumar Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer
Grade C (₹1 crore): Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, 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 Chakravarthy, Harshit Rana
The announcement reflects the BCCI's strategic focus on performance, fitness, and availability across formats as the board builds depth and continuity for the future.
