The BCCI revealed its central contracts list for the 2023-24 season Monday, and it included a few surprises. Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer, who have played key roles for Team India across formats in recent years, were left off the roster.
The statement reads:
“Please note that Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan were not considered for the annual contracts in this round of recommendations.”
Regrettably, the board didn’t provide any further details on the matter. Without a press briefing, this has led many individuals to make their own assumptions about why the two were missing from the roll.
BCCI Central Contracts Register:
Grade A+: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja. Grade A: R Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill and Hardik Pandya.
Grade B: Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Grade C: Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shardul Thakur, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi, Jitesh Sharma, Washington Sundar, Mukesh Kumar, Sanju Samson, Arshdeep Singh, KS Bharat, Prasidh Krishna, Avesh Khan and Rajat Patidar.
The announcement has taken majority of the involved parties by surprise, with guessing games about potential motivations behind it running rampant. Nevertheless, ignoring potential reasons, it didn’t seem logical for these two players to get passed over.
Here are three explanations as to why neglecting Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan from the BCCI central contracts list is an incorrect step.
3. There is a complete lack of transparency
As previously stated, the BCCI has not explained why Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan have been excluded. While the former has been busy in international cricket recently, including participating in the upcoming India versus England Test series, the latter has taken a vacation.
Kishan apparently took the leave for mental health issues, but there has been no formal confirmation. At a news conference, head coach Rahul Dravid briefly mentioned the problem, stating that the keeper-batter had not made himself available for selection.
Why haven’t any of the people involved provided appropriate explanations? Why is there no news conference hosted by the BCCI? Why wasn’t the justification explained in the first press release?
It would have been more reasonable to remove Shreyas and Kishan off the contract list if they had been more transparent about their rationale. They have now generated a cyclone of negative conjecture and uncertainty, which is even more wrong.
2. BCCI’s central contracts policy could force players to compromise on form and fitness
It’s been stated that Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan’s non-inclusion is largely because they missed the Ranji Trophy 2024. While Iyer is ready to compete for Mumbai in the semi-finals against Tamil Nadu, Kishan hasn’t been seen playing red-ball cricket recently.
Iyer has been grappling with a back problem for some time, leading him to spend a significant period out of action. He also experienced back discomfort, which required surgical intervention before the 2023 World Cup, during the tests between India and England. On the other hand, Kishan hasn’t had much experience with red-ball cricket and is mostly known for his performances in limited-over matches.
The Pakistan Cricket Board established a dangerous precedent by revoking Haris Rauf’s core contract after he opted out of the Australia Test tour. The BCCI appears to be taking that approach, compelling all players to play all three forms regardless of form or health.
3. Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer became key players for India with stellar performances
Shreyas Iyer put forth an admirable performance during the 2023 World Cup. He garnered 530 runs in 11 innings with a commendable average of 66.25 and a strike rate of 113.24. He scored a game-changing century in the semi-final against New Zealand, offering a silver lining despite the team’s defeat in the final match. The 29-year-old sportsman is a habitual player of the other two formats too.
Ishan Kishan might not have stood out in the World Cup, but he stands as a crucial player in the team across various formats. The left-handed batsman has participated in numerous T20Is during the period of the central contract and even stepped into this test debut in the wake of Rishabh Pant’s absence.
Both players have performed admirably for the Indian squad and deserve to be rewarded. It is almost insulting not to award them central contracts, even if they appear to have done something wrong in the board’s view. Selecting them for squads is another matter entirely, but they should at least be contracted.