Shreyas, Kishan return to BCCI central contracts; Pant promoted to Grade A

BCCI announces annual retainers for male cricketers; Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan get central contracts, Rishabh Pant promoted.

Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan have been handed a central contract while Rishabh Pant has been promoted from Grade B to A as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the list of 34 male cricketers with annual retainers for 2024-25.

The much-delayed contracted players’ list from October 2024 to September 2025 was made public on Monday. While Shreyas expectedly returned to Grade B, Kishan made a surprising return in Grade C, the lowest tier of the four brackets, which has 19 cricketers in all.

Both Shreyas and Kishan were not considered for the previous cycle as a disciplinary action after not turning up for their respective state teams in the Ranji Trophy.

The Hindu understands that Kishan has been included in the list with the national selectors considering him as part of the target pool for the limited-overs squads.

Pant, one of the few possible all-format specialists, has been promoted to the second-highest bracket after recovering from a road accident and marking his return in the previous cycle. The wicketkeeper-batter will now have to translate the faith shown in him by the national selectors and the BCCI office-bearers into consistent performances.

None of the stand-by pacers, who had been handed contracts in the previous cycle, have been awarded a contract this time around. Also omitted from the list are wicketkeepers Jitesh Sharma and K.S. Bharat along with all-rounder Shardul Thakur.

The list: Grade A+ (₹7 crore each): Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja.