Kohli, Dhoni proposed A+ category to reward India's top performers, says Rai

Vinod Rai

Contrary to popular belief that Mahendra Singh Dhoni was relegated from the elite category of central contracts, it was the former skipper himself who wanted an A+ grade for top performers, says CoA chief Vinod Rai. Twenty-six cricketers have been handed central contracts with skipper Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah being included in the R7 crore A+ category. Dhoni is in the A category with R5 crore annual retainership.

"This A+ category was proposed by the players themselves. We had a discussion about this category with Dhoni and Virat. They proposed that there should be a category of world class excellence in which players, who play all three formats of the game, should be there," Rai told PTI.

The head of the Committee of Administrators said both Dhoni and Kohli wanted A+ to be a functional category to indicate, who are India's team's top performers. "This should be a functional category where players move in and out. Also it will show that the best in the business are rewarded as per performance."

What the former CAG found heartening was the camaraderie between Kohli and Dhoni: "Their camaraderie is exceptional with so much mutual respect. Virat respects Dhoni's cricketing acumen and Dhoni respects what Virat is achieving as a player."

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