'Central contracts unlikely before Asia Cup' - Nair

India's cricketers will have to wait for some more time for their central contracts with the board. "At this stage I can only say that it is possible, but not likely that the central contracts will be in place before the Asia Cup," SK Nair, the secretary of the BCCI, told Wisden Cricinfo. "We had hoped that we could work out all the details, and have a meeting before the team left for Sri Lanka, but that has not been possible."

Nair added that the board wanted to tread cautiously in the matter, and not hurry things. "There isn't a time frame on this, and the board feels it is best that we take our time to make sure the system is as foolproof as possible," he said. "An agreement document has to be in place first and that will take some time. This is a major step and the contracts will be binding on both the board and the players so we don't want to rush into anything."

A screening committee of the BCCI was scheduled to meet on July 9 in Kolkata to sort out the final details of a long-drawn-out process that would end with upto 20 cricketers getting contracts. The minimum eligibility for these contracts - divided into A, B and C categories - is that the player should have played three Tests or 10 one-day internationals.

It is already public knowledge that an A-grade contract comes with an annual retainer of Rs60lakhs (US$130,000 approx), B-grade with contract half that amount, and C-grade contract with half of the B grade. In addition to this the players will be paid match fees of Rs2lakhs for each Test and Rs1.6lakhs for each one-dayer. While the retainers are graded, the actual match fee received by the players will be uniform, with reserve players earning 50% of those who are in the playing XI.

A four-man committee comprising Jagmohan Dalmiya, the BCCI president, SK Nair, the board secretary, John Wright, the coach, and Syed Kirmani, the chairman of selectors, will not only decide which cricketers should get contracts but also which grade they should come under. Interestingly, when the first steps to form such a committee were taken in 2002, Dalmiya had said that the committee would also include an "eminent former Indian cricketer," but the board seems to have gone back on that decision.

In the course of the same meeting the board had approved plans of a four-tier system with contracts being handed out in the categories A1 (Rs75lakhs), A (Rs60lakhs), B (Rs30lakhs) and C (Rs15lakhs). It was also decided then that the minimum qualification for the top grade would be three Tests and 10 one-dayers, as opposed to the current three Tests or 10 one-dayers.

Other clauses that could have stalled the process at that stage include ones that govern the control the board had over players. "A contracted player would be required to perform his usual responsibilities. In addition the board would have the authority to use the attributes of a player for publicity and promotion of cricket," ran one clause. "The player would be free to pursue commercial activities, provided such activities are not in conflict with that of the board sponsors, and that such activities are not against the interest of the board." The contract added, "A player would be required to inform the board within ten days of execution of a contract with regard to his existing individual sponsorships and endorsements."

For the moment, though, it appears that the players, who have been in constant talks, have sorted out all the nitty-gritties. The lawyers of both parties have sat together, sorted out the legal requirements and now the players and the board are poised to enter into these contracts. Whether the formation of the Indian Cricket Players' Association (ICPA), which did not exist in 2002 when the board began on the path to central contracts, has helped matters, is tough to say but it must be noted that Anil Kumble, a vice-president of the ICPA, has been at the forefront of talks with the board in this regard.

Arun Lal, the former Indian batsman and current secretary of the ICPA, told Wisden Cricinfo, "The ICPA hasn't been involved as a body, but our functionaries certainly have. The Board doesn't recognise the ICPA, so there's no point pushing things and getting into a confrontation. As long as the job is getting done what's the problem? The end objective is that the cricketers should get what they deserve.

"The idea of a players' association is not to thump the table all the time," explained Lal. "It just needs to be there as a pressure group. A lot of good things have happened both for first-class cricketers, former cricketers and current cricketers in the last couple of years, since the ICPA was formed."