Vaughan unhappy with Jadeja's BCCI contract, wants same pay grade for CSK star as Kohli

Unhappy with the central contracts announced by the BCCI on Thursday, former England skipper Michael Vaughan has called for an upgrade in all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja's current pay grade. The ace Indian all-rounder has been handed an A-grade contract which provides him with an annual payment of INR 5 crores. However, displeased with the current contract, Vaughan labelled it a 'disgrace' and remarked that Jadeja should be given the same pay grade as skipper Virat Kohli. Quoting a report on Twitter, Vaughan said that Jadeja should be on the biggest contract just behind skipper Virat Kohli. 

Significantly, skipper Virat Kohli has bagged an A+ contract for the period of October 2020 to September 2021.  The Indian skipper is amongst the only three players to have been given the A+ contract which carries an annual payment of INR 7 crores. The other two players in the A+ list are Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah. 

'India's greatest ever fielder'

Vaughan's comments come after Ravindra Jadeja's exploits against Punjab Kings in the ongoing IPL match. Jadeja's lightning-fast fielding effort within the powerplay helped CSK dismiss Punjab skipper KL Rahul cheaply which eventually caused a downfall of the Punjab batting lineup. Moreover, Jadeja leapt to pull the bowl of thin air as he helped Deepak Chahar bag his second wicket of the game. Jadeja's skills on the field prompted Michael Vaughan to heap high praise on the CSK star. Vaughan also declared that Jadeja is his favourite Indian player and the country's 'greatest-ever fielder.' 

BCCI announces central contracts

In the Grade A contract list which costs INR 5 crores, 10 cricketers have been named. These include the likes of veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Cheteshwar Pujara, KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya amongst others. Significantly, Natarajan and Manish Pandey have failed to bag a central contract despite the former's impeccable debut during the Australia tour and his continuous selection in subsequent limited-overs series. 

Shardul Thakur, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Wriddhiman Saha and Mayank Agarwal bagged a B Grade contract which brings them into the pay category of an annual INR 3 crores. Despite Kuldeep Yadav's continuous snub, the chinaman has bagged a C Grade contract alongside Navdeep Saini, Deepak Chahar, Axar Patel and Shreyas Iyer. Team India's SCG Test hero Hanuma Vihari has managed to bag a C grade contract whereas recent debutants Washington Sundar, Navdeep Saini, Shubman Gill and Mohammed Siraj will also receive an annual fee of Rs 1 crores under the C category contract. 

Chahar stuns Punjab 

Winning the toss, MS Dhoni put Punjab Kings to bat first at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday. Swinging into action from the very first over, Deepak Chahar's peach of delivery shattered Mayank Agarwal's stumps to help CSK draw first blood. Jadeja's lightning-fast effort in the field sent skipper KL Rahul back to pavillion and an aerobatic catch helped Deepak Chahar get his second wicket. The CSK pacer also accounted for Nicholas Pooran for a duck and dismissed Deepak Hooda in his last over. Chahar ended his spell with 4 wickets and conceded only 13 runs.