Former India cricketer Rohan Gavaskar has urged the state cricket associations to consider a contract system for their players, similar to BCCI’s process for the Indian team.
“All state associations should have annual contracts with their players like the BCCI does with the Indian team. A,B,C categories. If state contracts are not there then it’s impossible to make payments to domestic players in such a situation,” Gavaskar tweeted on Wednesday.
The southpaw, who played for Bengal, urged associations to look into the welfare of domestic cricketers.
“How does one determine who would have played the entire season ? Could some senior players have been dropped midway ? What about the youngsters who may have made their debuts ? Will they not get anything ? What happens to the white ball specialists ? The red ball specialists ?
“The state associations need to look after their players. The domestic players are the ones who really keep the game going. They have to be taken care of. Start annual contracts for them.”
The former batter’s comments come in the wake of the backlash that the BCCI faced as reports suggest that domestic players await compensation from the BCCI that is yet to be disbursed as state units have still not sent in the requisite details.
BCCI has always allocated a share from its TV broadcast revenue to the domestic cricketers and it is normally paid in September after the annual accounts are settled.
The BCCI however has also been on the receiving end of strong criticism for not having paid the Indian women’s senior team their dues from the prize money of the T20 World Cup in 2020. India had finished runner-up, losing to Australia in the final at a packed MCG.
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