Payment clearing coincides with the start of the new Ranji Trophy season from January 13 to March 17 at seven locations

In a move best described by one national player as a “Christmas present,” BCCI has started paying match fees it owes hundreds of national cricketers – men and women – around the country for tournaments. who had to be suspended due to Covid-19 in the 2020-21 season. ESPNcricinfo understands that players from these associations who duly sent in the completed invoices have started to be compensated at 50% of their regular earnings.

While the process has started, a number of actors have yet to receive payments due to procedural delays regarding invoices issued. The delays are said to be due to problems at the level of state associations.

A player who participated in eight matches of the 2019-2020 Ranji Trophy, for example, received 11.20 INR lakh (approximately USD 15,000), with the match fee per day for the four-day tournament being INR 35,000 ( Approximately USD 470). For 2020-2021, according to the established compensation structures, the same player will receive INR 5.10 lakh (approximately USD 6,800). Players who did not make the XI for certain games in 2019-2020 will be compensated for 2020-21 on a pro rata basis. For example, if a player was in the XI of a team for four games and on the bench for four games during the 2019-2020 season, for 2020-21, he will be paid 50% of the match fee. for four games and 50%. corresponding fees for players outside the starting XI for the rest of the games.

Payments clearing coincides with the start of the new Ranji Trophy season from Jan.13 to March 17 across seven locations, even as confusion reigns among some players over further lineup adjustments due to increased cases of Covid-19 across the country, accelerated by the Omicron variant.

As for the payments for 2021-2022, the board previously announced a significant increase in match fees for domestic players. The new salary brackets, which will be in place from this season, will allow senior men to earn between 40,000 and 60,000 INR (about 540 to 810 USD) per day from cricket while senior women will earn up to 20,000. INR (approx USD 270) per day.

This increase is small for players in the first category (less than 20 matches) but an increase of almost 100% for more experienced hands (more than 40 matches), while those who have played between 21 and 40 matches will win 50,000. INR (approximately USD 680). Previously, senior male cricketers earned INR 35,000 (around $ 470) per day for first class and one-day matches, regardless of their number of caps, and INR 17,500 (around $ 240) per match. for T20s.

For senior players, who previously earned INR 12,500 (around $ 170) per one-day match and INR 6,250 (around $ 85) per T20 match, the salary has been increased to INR 20,000 for XI and 10 members. 000 INR. (USD 135 approx) for those on the bench in both limited edition formats. There is currently no first-class competition for women in India, with the country’s last multi-day women’s tournament – the 2017-18 Senior Women’s Three-Day Interzonal Match – being held in March-April 2018.

Players across the country are hoping to resolve this issue at the end of the current season, when BCCI holds their annual Captains and Coaches Conclave.