BCCI announces Test Cricket Incentive Scheme for India after 4-1 win over England

In a significant move, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced an additional corpus of INR 40 crore to promote Test cricket following India's thumping win over England in the final Test in Dharamshala on March 9. India, who have exhibited absolute mastery throughout the series didn't fail to abide by that in the final game. Rohit Sharma's men clinched the game by an innings and 64 runs to wrap up the series 4-1, making them the first team to overcome England in a Test series in the 'Bazball' era.

Shortly after the win, BCCI secretary Jay Shah announced that the governing body has planned to start the 'Test Cricket Incentive Scheme' for the senior men’s team. The initiative is in pursuit of the aim to provide financial expansion and firmness to the athletes, according to Shah. 

As specified by the proposed structure of a total INR 40 crore corpus scheme, the match fees doubles per game for the players who have taken part in India's XI of over 50 percent of Tests in a season since 2022-23. Meanwhile, players who feature in 5 & 6 Tests in a nine-match season, will get INR 30 lakh per match as opposed to INR 15 lakh per match. In addition, a player's salary will double from 22.5 lakh per match to 45 lakh if he plays no less than 75 percent of matches.

"I am pleased to announce the initiation of the 'Test Cricket Incentive Scheme' for Senior Men, a step aimed at providing financial growth and stability to our esteemed athletes. Commencing from the 2022-23 season, the 'Test Cricket Incentive Scheme' will serve as an additional reward structure on top of the existing match fee for Test matches, set at INR 15 lakhs," Shah wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

Also read: IND vs ENG 5th Test, Day 3 Highlights: Unmissable video recap, turning points, match analysis, stats, and more

See Jay Shah's X post:

I am pleased to announce the initiation of the 'Test Cricket Incentive Scheme' for Senior Men, a step aimed at providing financial growth and stability to our esteemed athletes. Commencing from the 2022-23 season, the 'Test Cricket Incentive Scheme' will serve as an additional… pic.twitter.com/Rf86sAnmuk

— Jay Shah (@JayShah) March 9, 2024

The landmark initiative of the BCCI reaffirms the call made by Jay Shah before the board announced the Annual Player Contracts for Team India last month. Shah had earlier cautioned the centrally-contracted Indian players to not prioritize franchise cricket over domestic cricket while also saying the board was proud of the Indian Premier League's success since its inception. 

Also read: Twitter Reactions: Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan 'not considered' in BCCI's central contract restructure

Notably, in an unexpected twist, BCCI eliminated Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan from the list which included the likes of 35 players. The duo was known for their brilliant performances in recent times. However, it was no secret that they found themselves missing from the list after refusing to take part in the 2023-2024 Ranji Trophy.