Exclusive: Indian Cricket Team Players Official Salary for 2024

Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, and Jasprit Bumrah, the highest grade players as we look at the official salary of the Indian team for AY 2023-2024.  

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Wednesday, February 28 officially announced the annual player retenship for the period from October 1, 2023 to September 30, 2024. A total of 30 players have been retained under the central contract across four major categories with five more players being recommended in a special category for fast bowlers.

In a firm stance taken by the BCCI, they have clearly highlighted while excluding Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan from the central contract that only players who are giving precedence to the domestic circuit when they are not representing the Indian team have been given precedence. The BCCI has specially highlighted this case after it was brought to notice that both players were ignoring domestic Ranji matches. 

Other than these two, the BCCI has not retained Umesh Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shikhar Dhawan, Deepak Hooda, and Cheteshwar Pujara. All these players hardly played for India last year, and thus don’t meet the minimum criteria of player retentions. So, with the official names in front of us, let’s look at the complete salary breakdown of Indian cricket team players for AY 2024-2024. 

Indian Cricket Team Players Salary for AY 2023-2024:

Grade A+ – INR 7 Cr

1. Jasprit Bumrah
2. Ravindra Jadeja
3. Rohit Sharma
4. Virat Kohli

Talking about the players who have been retained in the highest grade, A+, there are four names who were placed in the A+ category like last year as well. This is a category that gives preference to players who play all three formats, and we have four names in the form of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, and Ravindra Jadeja.

Grade A – INR 5 Cr

1. Hardik Pandya
2. KL Rahul
3. Mohd Shami
4. Mohd Siraj
5. Ravichandran Ashwin
6. Shubman Gill

Coming to Grade A, there are six players in this category with as many as three being newly added players. While Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, and Hardik Pandya retain themselves in Grade A, KL Rahul, Shubham Gill, and Mohammed Siraj get an upgrade in the A category after impressing last year in two or more formats.

Grade B – INR 3 Cr

1. Axar Patel
2. Kuldeep Yadav
3. Rishabh Pant
4. Suryakumar Yadav
5. Yashasvi Jaiswal

The Grade B has five players with Suryakumar Yadav retaining himself in Grade A while mostly representing India in one format. Rishabh Pant has been demoted to Grade B, but having not played a single International match last year, this seems a generous move by the BCCI. Other than these two, Yashasvi Jaiswal is the biggest gainer in the Central contract with a direct jump to B in his debut year.

Grade C – INR 1 Cr

1. Arshdeep Singh
2. Avesh Khan
3. Jitesh Sharma
4. KS Bharat
5. Mukesh Kumar
6. Prasidh Krishna
7. Rajat Patidar
8. Ravi Bishnoi
9. Rinku Singh
10. Ruturaj Gaikwad
11. Sanju Samson
12. Shardul Thakur
13. Shivam Dube
14. Tilak Varma
15. Washington Sundar

Grade C has the maximum of players under Central contract for AY 2023-24. There are a total of 15 players in this category with as many as 10 newly added players. The category rewards consistent players who have represented India in a good number of matches last year.

Fast Bowling Contracts:

1. Akash Deep
2. Umran Malik
3. Vidwath Kaverappa
4. Vijaykumar Vyshak
5. Yash Dayal

Finally, the BCCI has introduced a new category, a fast bowling contract to award the emerging fast bowlers in the Indian team. There are five players who have been proposed in this category are Akash Deep, Umran Malik, Vidwath Kaperappa, Vijaykumar Vyshak, and Umran Malik. Three of these pacers have not represented the Indian team as yet, but in a bid to promote fast bowling, BCCI’s move seems a game changer. 

In addition, the BCCI has also made it clear that Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan will get a Grade C contract if they play the Dharamsala Test match vs England. The current rule awards a central contract if a player has played at least 3 Tests, 8 ODIs, or 10 T20Is. Moreover, BCCI hasn’t shared the salary structure, but as understood from previous years, Grade A+ players will get 7 Cr, Grade A players will get 5 Cr, Grade B players will get 3 Cr, and Grade C players will get 1 Cr. 

Thanks for reading! What’s your take on the official salary of Indian Cricket team players for AY 2023-2024? Please email your thoughts to business@cricalytics.com

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