During the recent announcement of BCCI contracts, notable omissions were observed, particularly the absence of Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan. Shedding light on this decision, BCCI secretary Jay Shah clarified that the call to drop them from the retainers contract list was made by chief selector Ajit Agarkar.
The primary reason behind this stringent action was their non-participation in domestic cricket fixtures. Despite Ishan Kishan’s hiatus from the Indian team and Iyer’s injury post the second IND vs ENG Test, both players opted to disregard the directives of Rahul Dravid and Jay Shah, abstaining from Ranji Trophy matches.
Addressing the matter during a media interaction at the BCCI headquarters, Shah emphasized his role as a convener and Agarkar’s authority in the selection process. “That decision lies with Ajit Agarkar,” Shah stated, adding, “Nobody is indispensable.”
While the exclusion appeared decisive, Shah disclosed that he had personally communicated with the duo subsequent to the contract announcements. The BCCI’s central contracts list now reflects a reshuffle, introducing new faces like Sanju Samson, signifying a shift in the team’s dynamics.
BCCI Central Contracts List:
- Grade A+: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja
- Grade A: R Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya
- Grade B: Surya Kumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Yashasvi Jaiswal
- Grade C: 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
