The idea of fast-bowling contracts is a new thing in BCCI's annual central contracts, and has been lauded by several former cricketers as well.
The BCCI central contracts list saw few players being promoted and few demoted as well. The list has been expanded from 26 in the last year to 30 this time around. While the Grade A+ (top tier) remains the same, there have been some changes in the other grades.
Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, and Shubman Gill were in Group B last year and have been promoted to Group A. Kuldeep Yadav has been promoted to Group B. All of these players have played international cricket regularly during this period.
Yashasvi Jaiswal has made the biggest leap among all the players. He has been given a central contract for the first time. The left-hander made an entry straight into Group B because of his consistent performances in Test and T20I cricket.
Among the players in Group C (last tier), there were many who were offered a central contract for the first time. Most of these players were T20 specialists. According to BCCI, all cricketers who play a minimum of three Tests or eight ODIs or ten T20Is within the specified period will automatically be included in Grade C on a pro-rata basis. This means that India’s latest Test debutants, Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel, will be included in Group C if they play Dharamsala Test.
Yashasvi Jaiswal has made the biggest leap among all the players. He has been given a central contract for the first time. The left-hander made an entry straight into Group B because of his consistent performances in Test and T20I cricket.
Meanwhile, India’s latest Test debutants Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel
There was some disappointing news as well as some players were demoted. The list contains some big names as well.
Rishabh Pant and Axar Patel have been demoted from Group A to Group B. Pant suffered a car accident in December 2022, and hasn’t played any cricket since then. He is set to be back on the cricket field from IPL 2024.
Rest of the players do not fulfil the criteria set by BCCI to get a direct entry into the list, except Shreyas Iyer. Despite fulfilling the criteria in terms of matches played, Iyer was omitted due to his lack of commitment to play first-class cricket and instead prioritizing IPL.
Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan were in the scheme of things for most part of the cycle but both skipped Ranji Trophy matches for their respective sides, despite being declared fit by NCA.
In a positive step, the selection committee led by Ajit Agarkar also recommended fast-bowling contracts to the five fast bowlers. Those bowlers are Akash Deep, Umran Malik, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Yash Dayal, and V Kaverappa.
Former cricketers Ravi Shastri and Ian Bishop have come out in support of BCCI for their innovative move to have fast-bowling contracts.
Big applause to @BCCI and @JayShah for the game-changing move with ‘fast bowling’ contracts. A crucial step in gearing up for Down Under later this year. The emphasis on Test Cricket and Domestic Cricket is a powerful message, setting the right tone for the future of our beloved…
— Ravi Shastri (@RaviShastriOfc) February 28, 2024
Very innovative move by India to give out fast-bowling contracts. I am a big fan of that, especially to see Umran Malik’s name in that list. Any team that wants to be globally competitive must procure and develop quality fast-bowlers.
— Ian Raphael Bishop (@irbishi) February 28, 2024
The idea behind the fast-bowling contract is to make sure the fast bowlers are insured in case of any injury. The fast bowlers are known to be highly-prone towards injuries. Such types of contracts will enable these fast bowlers to complete their rehabilitation at NCA in Bengaluru.
