The Secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Devajit Saikia, has confirmed that the A-plus category in the Annual Central Contracts will be suspended for now. The decision was taken because the players who earlier qualified for this group are no longer playing all three formats of the game.
The contract for the 2025–26 season will have only three groups – A, B and C. Speaking to Sportstar, Saikia said, “The plan will go ahead very soon. We are removing one category because the players who were eligible for the A-plus category are now playing just one of the three formats. The criteria we have set to qualify a player for A-plus are not being fulfilled.”
Under the current contract system, players in the A-plus category earn Rs. 7 crore per year. Category A players get Rs. 5 crore, Category B players receive Rs. 3 crore, and Category C players are paid Rs. 1 crore annually.
Saikia further explained the reason behind the decision, stating, “Some of the players who were in that A-plus bracket have decided not to play in all three formats. Therefore, there are not enough players remaining to qualify and fulfil the eligibility criteria.” He also added, “A one-format player will not be eligible for A-plus, so that’s why we had to take a call. There is no heartburn.”
Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja were the only players who were listed in the A-plus category. Among them, Bumrah is the only player who currently plays all three formats. Kohli and Rohit have stepped away from Tests and T20Is, while Jadeja plays Tests and ODIs after retiring from T20Is. Despite this change, Jasprit Bumrah will not face any pay cut.
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