NEW DELHI: India women's team captain Harmanpreet Kaur, vice-captain Smriti Mandhana, and all-rounder Deepti Sharma have been retained in Grade A, the highest tier of central contracts offered by the BCCI.
Pacer Renuka Thakur, all-rounder Jemimah Rodrigues, wicketkeeper Richa Ghosh, and opener Shafali Verma have secured their spots in Grade B.
Left-arm spinner Rajeshwari Gaikwad, who was part of Grade B last year, has not been included this season.
Meanwhile, young off-spinner Shreyanka Patil, pacers Titas Sadhu and Arundhati Reddy, all-rounder Amanjot Kaur, and wicketkeeper Uma Chetry have received their first central contracts, making their way into Grade C. They join Yastika Bhatia, Radha Yadav, Sneh Rana, and Pooja Vastrakar in this category.
On the other hand, Meghna Singh, Devika Vaidya, Sabbineni Meghana, Anjali Sarvani, and Harleen Deol have missed out on contracts this time.
As per the BCCI’s contract structure, players in Grade A earn Rs 50 lakh , while those in Grades B and C receive Rs 30 lakh and Rs 10 lakh, respectively, in addition to their match fees.
The Indian women’s team will face a crucial test later this year when they compete in the ODI World Cup on home soil. Despite their wealth of talent, they are still chasing an elusive global trophy.
