Yashasavi Jaiswal earned a Grade B contract

10 other players earned a Grade C contract for the first time

Both Shreyas and Ishan are talent players: Irfan

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the annual list of centrally contracted players. Wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan and batsman Shreyas Iyer are notable omissions from this list. Cheteshwar Pujara, Umesh Yadav, Shikhar Dhawan, Deepak Hooda and Yuzvendra Chahal are the other players who were not retained. Yashasvi Jaiswal’s performance earned him a Grade B contract. 10 other players earned a contract for the first time under Grade C. “Please note that Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan were not considered for the annual contracts in this round of recommendations. The BCCI has recommended that all athletes give precedence to participating in domestic cricket during periods when they are not representing the national team,” BCCI said in its statement. 

Former Indian all rounder Irfan Pathan reacted to this development. “They are talented cricketers, both Shreyas and Ishan. Hoping they bounce back and come back stronger. “If players like Hardik don’t want to play red ball cricket, should he and others like him participate in white-ball domestic cricket when they aren’t on national duty? If this doesn’t apply to all, then Indian cricket won’t achieve the desired results,” he posted on the microblogging platform X (formerly known as Twitter). 

They are talented cricketers, both Shreyas and Ishan. Hoping they bounce back and come back stronger. If players like Hardik don’t want to play red ball cricket, should he and others like him participate in white-ball domestic cricket when they aren’t on national duty? If this…

— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) February 29, 2024