BCCI central contracts 2025/26: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli demoted
What's the story
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the central contracts for the Indian men's and women's teams on February 9. In a major development, star batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been demoted to Grade B. The two veteran batters, who were earlier given an A+ contract for playing all three formats, have retired from Tests and T20Is.
Twitter Post
BCCI central contracts 2025/26
🚨 News 🚨
— BCCI (@BCCI) February 9, 2026
BCCI announces Annual Player Retainership for Team India Senior Men and Senior Women for the 2025-26 season#TeamIndia | Details 🔽https://t.co/Rd3pUCPRr9 pic.twitter.com/UNYRThs1kW
Revamp
Grade A+ category scrapped
As reported earlier, the BCCI annual central contract system has been revamped. The proposed changes, suggested by the selection committee, scrapped the A+ category. The contract list now has only three categories: A, B, and C. Shubman Gill, who leads India in ODIs and Tests, is in Grade A along with all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and premier pacer Jasprit Bumrah.
Demotion
Rohit, Kohli demoted
As mentioned, Rohit and Kohli have been demoted to Grade B. The two veteran batters currently play only ODI cricket, having retired from the Test and T20I formats. Earlier, Rohit and Kohli were in Grade A+ along with Bumrah and Jadeja. It is worth noting that Jadeja has also retired from T20I cricket. His ODI form has also been under the scanner.
Information
What about the women's side?
The central contract for the Indian women's team will follow the same system. Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Jemimah Rodrigues, and Deepti Sharma form Grade A, while Grade B includes Renuka Thakur, Shafali Verma, Richa Ghosh, and Sneh Rana.