Mumbai, Feb 9 (UNI) The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Monday announced its new annual retainership contract, moving Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from the topmost bracket to Grade B, while elevating Shubman Gill to Grade A, giving him the top slot among men’s players.
From a cricketing perspective, this is not merely a contractual adjustment — it reflects the natural evolution of the team and the emergence of a new generation of leaders.
Grade A contracts for the Senior Men now include Shubman Gill, Jasprit Bumrah, and Ravindra Jadeja. Grade B comprises Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Mohammad Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Suryakumar Yadav, and Shreyas Iyer.
Grade C has grown substantially compared with 2024-25, bringing in Axar Patel, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube, Sanju Samson, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Dhruv Jurel, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Abhishek Sharma, Sai Sudharsan, Ravi Bishnoi, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Devajit Saikia.
Looking back at the 2024-25 retainerships, Rohit and Virat were part of the untouchable A plus tier, alongside Bumrah and Jadeja. That topmost category has now been removed.
From a cricketing standpoint, this is significant: it demonstrates a clear focus on current performance and workload management, rather than past achievements alone. The expansion of Grade C is also noteworthy, as it ensures a broader pool of players gain financial security and experience, which is essential for India’s long-term success across formats.
As for the senior women, Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, and Jemimah Rodrigues remain in Grade A, while Grade B includes Deepti Sharma, Renuka Thakur, Shafali Verma, Richa Ghosh and Sneh Rana.
Grade C has grown to accommodate Radha Yadav, Amanjot Kaur, Pratika Rawal, Kranti Gaud, Uma Chetry, Arundhati Reddy, Sree Charani, Yastika Bhatia, Harleen Deol, Kashvee Gautam, G Kamalini, Vaishnavi Sharma, and Tejal Hasabnis.
This expansion reflects BCCI’s continued effort to build depth and stability in the women’s team, which is crucial as they prepare for major international tournaments.
Devajit Saikia, BCCI Honorary Secretary, emphasised that the process is transparent and merit-based, recognising both consistent performers and promising talent.
In the end, the 2025-26 retainerships tell a story beyond numbers. The old guard’s dominance is moderated, the young guard ascends, and the game itself progresses.
