The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) recently announced the annual player retainership for the 2023-24 season, notably excluding Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan from the senior players’ lists.
In a statement released, the board clarified its decision, stating, “Please note that Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan were not considered for the annual contracts in this round of recommendations.”
Iyer’s absence from the Indian squad after the second Test against England raised eyebrows, especially after he made himself available for the Mumbai Ranji Trophy side’s semi-final against Tamil Nadu. However, he had opted out of the Ranji Trophy quarter-final against Baroda citing back pain, despite no fresh injury reports from the National Cricket Academy’s head of sports science and medicine, Nitin Patel.
BCCI secretary Jay Shah had previously warned centrally-contracted and A team players about the consequences of non-participation in domestic cricket, particularly after Kishan withdrew from the South Africa tour due to personal reasons and subsequently opted not to play for Jharkhand. Kishan was later spotted training with his new team, the Mumbai Indians, alongside skipper Hardik Pandya ahead of the upcoming IPL season.
The new contracts for the 2023-24 season see Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, and Ravindra Jadeja placed in Grade A+, the highest category. They are followed by R Ashwin, Mohd. Shami, Mohd. Siraj, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, and Hardik Pandya in Grade A, and Surya Kumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, and Yashasvi Jaiswal in Grade B.
Grade C includes Rinku Singh, Tilak Verma, Ruturaj Gaekwad, Shardul Thakur, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi, Jitesh Sharma, Washington Sundar, Mukesh Kumar, Sanju Samson, Arshdeep Singh, KS Bharat, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan, and Rajat Patidar.
Grade A+
| Athlete |
|---|
| Rohit Sharma |
| Virat Kohli |
| Jasprit Bumrah |
| Ravindra Jadeja |
Grade A
| Athlete |
|---|
| R Ashwin |
| Mohd. Shami |
| Mohd. Siraj |
| KL Rahul |
| Shubman Gill |
| Hardik Pandya |
Grade B
| Athlete |
|---|
| Surya Kumar Yadav |
| Rishabh Pant |
| Kuldeep Yadav |
| Axar Patel |
| Yashasvi Jaiswal |
Grade C
| Athlete |
|---|
| Rinku Singh |
| Tilak Verma |
| Ruturaj Gaekwad |
| Shardul Thakur |
| Shivam Dube |
| Ravi Bishnoi |
| Jitesh Sharma |
| Washington Sundar |
| Mukesh Kumar |
| Sanju Samson |
| Arshdeep Singh |
| KS Bharat |
| Prasidh Krishna |
| Avesh Khan |
| Rajat Patidar |
The board also highlighted that athletes meeting specific criteria for international match appearances would automatically be included in Grade C. For example, Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan, having played a minimum number of matches, would be considered for Grade C if they participate in the upcoming matches.
Additionally, the Selection Committee recommended fast bowling contracts for Akash Deep, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Umran Malik, Yash Dayal, and Vidwath Kaverappa.
Furthermore, the BCCI emphasized the importance of athletes prioritizing participation in domestic cricket when not representing the national team.