BCCI set to announce 2025-26 central contracts; Kuldeep, Axar likely to be promoted

MUMBAI: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is expected to announce the central contracts for the 2025-26 season by the end of this week, according to BCCI sources.

As per sources, star spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel are likely to be promoted from Grade B to Grade A. Middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer is also expected to make a return to the contract list after being dropped for the 2024-25 season.

The sources further said that senior players Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Jasprit Bumrah are likely to retain their places in the A+ grade.

Kuldeep and Axar have been among India’s top performers during their two recent ICC title wins—the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 and the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.

In the T20 World Cup, Kuldeep took 10 wickets at an average of 13.90 and an economy rate of 6.95, with best figures of 3/19. In the Champions Trophy, he claimed 7 wickets at an average of 31.85, with an economy rate of 4.79 and best figures of 3/40.

Axar Patel, India’s key spin-bowling all-rounder, made important contributions in both tournaments. In eight games and five innings during the T20 World Cup 2024, he scored 92 runs in five innings at an average of 23.00 and a strike rate of 139.39. He also took 9 wickets at an average of 19.22 and an economy rate of 7.86, with best figures of 3/23. His 47-run counter-attack in the final against South Africa proved vital.

In the ICC CT 2025, Axar made a valuable 109 runs in five innings at an average of 27.25 batting at number five, with a strike rate of around 74 in Dubai’s testing conditions.

He also made a case for himself as India’s most miser spinner, taking five wickets and conceding just 4.35 per over. His bowling average was also 39.20. With these two title wins and notable contributions in them, Axar has sealed for himself a permanent place in the Indian-set-up as an impact-making star. Axar has also been promoted to captaincy of Delhi Capitals (DC) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), and with five wins in six games, he is off to a fantastic start.

Shreyas Iyer also delivered some memorable performances despite being removed from central contracts last year, winning the IPL for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) as a captain, winning the Ranji Trophy, Irani Cup and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) in domestic cricket, with the SMAT win coming as a captain. Iyer scored heavily across all formats in domestic cricket before making his return to the ODI set-up during the England series this year and becoming India’s top run-getter in the ICC Champions Trophy title win, with 243 runs in five matches and two fifties. In eight ODIs this year, he has made 424 runs at an average of 53.00, with four fifties. The batter is off to a fine start as Punjab Kings (PBKS) skipper, having won four out of six matches so far and having made 250 runs in six matches with three fifties.

Rohit and Virat, who have both retired from the T20I format, are likely to continue being in the A+ category, having played a crucial role in India’s white-ball title wins recently. While Rohit scored 257 runs in eight matches during the T20 World Cup 2024, including three fifties, Virat scored a clutch 76 in the final against SA after a disappointing tournament.

During the Champions Trophy as well, Virat came good during run-chases against Pakistan and Australia, scoring 218 runs in five matches with a century and fifty each. Rohit also provided quickfire starts during the tournament, scoring 180 in five innings, with a knock of 76 runs in the final against New Zealand.

Bumrah, who last played for India in the Sydney Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and has just returned to the Mumbai Indians (MI) set-up in the ongoing IPL, has been an all-format star for India and looks unstoppable. He had an all-time great BGT campaign against Australia away from home, with 32 wickets in five matches.

He ended 2024 with 86 wickets in 21 international games, the most by any bowler, including a ‘Player of the Tournament’ award in the T20 World Cup 2024, where he took 15 crucial wickets in eight matches at an average of 8.26. (ANI)