The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is reportedly considering tripling the match fess for Test and first-cass matches to incetivise red-ball cricket for players. Information from The Times of India suggests that to discuss this possibility, the board sought the views of Rohit Sharma, the captain, and Ajit Agarkar, the chief selector.
The development comes after BCCI’s release of new contracts for 2023-24 which didn’t include names of Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer. Both players were under recent scrutiny for missing the Ranji Trophy. While Ishan had opted a break from cricket last year but was practicing in Gujarat, Shreyas told his team he had a bout with a back spasms, even though the National Cricket Academy (NCA) declared him fit.
In this instance, too, the BCCI apparently thought that they were prioritizing fitness for the lucrative IPL above appearances for their state teams. Jay Shah, the board secretary, had even warned them of’severe ramifications’ if this continued, as evidenced by the contracts.
“The recommendations are on the lines of increasing the Test match and first-class fees by three times,” TOI quoted a BCCI source as saying. “The idea is that if a player plays the entire Ranji Trophy, he should be able to make around Rs 75 lakhs which matches an average IPL contract. It has also been suggested that if a player plays all Test matches in a year, he should be able to make Rs 15 crores which is at par for any marquee IPL contract.
“The board may not agree to increasing the remuneration by three times at one go but they are considering meeting the players at mid-point. Even that should be a hefty raise. This is why the board has not announced the value of contracts. The board will have to decide if it wants to raise the match fees or make specified contracts accordingly,” the source added.
Currently, players in the Ranji Trophy earn around ₹25 lakh per year, which is just slightly higher than the base price in IPL auctions. The price for each test is ₹15 lakh.
The review indicated that the BCCI believes the standards of the Ranji Trophy have declined lately. This is because numerous players have chosen not to participate in the competition, thus adversely impacting India’s red-ball reservoir.
Rohit Sharma’s ‘hunger’ remark hints at BCCI contract changes
Talk of red-ball cricket preference reached skipper Rohit Sharma during the Test series against England, and he replied by announcing that his squad would only consider players with a ‘hunger’ for the longest format.
“This [Test cricket] is the toughest format,” Rohit said after India won the fourth Test against England in Ranchi to take an unassailable 3-1 lead. “And if you want success and want to excel in this tough format then you need that hunger. It is very important. We will give opportunity only to players who have that hunger. You come to know [easily] the players who don’t have that hunger, [or] players who don’t want to stay here [and play this format]. We come to know that.”
Rohit Sharma
India leads the series 3-1 over England and will face Ben Stokes and company in a dead-rubber final in Dharamshala on February 7.