BCCI announces annual player retainership 2024-25 – Team India (Senior Men)

The BCCI has announced the annual player retainership contracts for Team India (Senior Men) for the 2024-25 season, covering October 1, 2024, to September 30, 2025. A total of 34 players have been awarded central contracts across four grades: A+, A, B, and C.

Key Highlights

A+ Grade (₹7 crore): The elite group remains unchanged with Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, and Ravindra Jadeja continuing in this top bracket, reflecting their status as the core senior players.

Grade A (₹5 crore):  Includes Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami, and a notable promotion of Rishabh Pant from Grade B to Grade A, despite his injury absence in the previous season.

Grade B (₹3 crore): Shreyas Iyer returns to the list after being excluded last year, joining Suryakumar Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Yashasvi Jaiswal. Iyer had a strong season, including a key role in India’s ICC Champions Trophy win.

Grade C (₹1 crore): Ishan Kishan also makes a comeback after missing out last year, along with players like Rinku Singh, Tilak Verma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, and others.

Notable Omissions:

Ravichandran Ashwin, who was in Grade A last season, has been omitted following his recent retirement from Test cricket.

Additional Insights:

The list reflects a blend of experienced players and emerging talent, showing BCCI’s focus on grooming younger players while maintaining a strong core.

New entrants rewarded for domestic and IPL performances include Abhishek Sharma, Rajat Patidar, Dhruv Jurel, Sarfaraz Khan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Akash Deep, Varun Chakaravarthy, and Harshit Rana.

 This announcement sets the stage for the upcoming season, highlighting the players the BCCI is investing in for India’s cricketing future.