The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is considering removing the A+ category from the annual central contracts for the 2025–26 season.
The move is linked to Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma opting to play only ODIs, no longer featuring across all three formats.
BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia confirmed that A+ eligibility requires players to be available in all three formats (Tests, ODIs, T20Is), which is currently not the case.
Among last season’s A+ players - Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja - Bumrah is the only cricketer playing all formats.
If the proposal is approved, only A, B, and C categories will remain in the new central contract list, dropping the ₹7 crore A+ tier.
Under BCCI’s current central contract system, players earn ₹7 crore in A+, ₹5 crore in A, ₹3 crore in B, and ₹1 crore in C category annually.