Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli expected to suffer 57% pay-cut:BCCI set to revamp central contracts structure, reduce veterans’ salary by ₹4 crore

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is set to introduce a revised central contract system, under which the Grade A+ category will be discontinued. And if the apex board approves the new model, Team India veterans Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are expected to be placed in Grade B, according to BCCI sources. The selection committee, headed by Ajit Agarkar, has proposed changes to the central contract structure. The committee has recommended scrapping the A+ category (₹7 crore) and leaving only three categories: A, B, and C. However, further clarity on the monetary changes and whether the BCCI will approve this new model is expected at the next apex council meeting. New Model expected to cut Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma’s pay by 57% As per the proposed model, since the A+ category will be removed from the central contract list, it will come up to A, B, and C categories. Currently, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are in the A+ category (₹7 crore). Since they are only playing the ODI format, they were expected to slip down to A level contract. However, with the new model, A will be the top-tier, so both star players are likely to be placed in Category B. The category B offers ₹3 crore on an annual basis, which is ₹4 crore less than Rohit and Virat’s current annual pay. Therefore, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will suffer a 57% pay cut if BCCI approves the new model of contracts for Indian cricket players. Why will ‘Ro-Ko’ be placed in B category as per reported new contract model? If new model comes into effect, the A category will be reserved for players active in all three formats (Tests, ODIs, and T20Is). Since Virat and Rohit, both players have retired from T20Is and Tests to focus solely on ODIs, they’ll no longer meet the criteria for the highest bracket. What are the BCCI Central Contracts? BCCI Central Contracts are annual retainers awarded to Indian cricketers, categorised into A+, A, B, and C grades, with substantial yearly fees (₹7 crore for A+, Rs 5 crore for A, ₹3 crore for B, and ₹1 crore for C) in addition to match fees. The 2024-25 list, announced in April 2025, featured Rohit, Virat, Ravindra Jadeja and Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah in A+, while Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, Team India Men’s ODI and Test captain Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami and Rishabh Pant are placed in Grade A. T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shreyas Iyer found themselves in Grade B. Grade C includes: Rinku Singh, Tilak Verma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, Mukesh Kumar, Sanju Samson, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Rajat Patidar, Dhruv Jurel, Sarfaraz Khan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ishan Kishan, Abhishek Sharma, Akash Deep, Varun Chakaravarthy and Harshit Rana.