21 cricketers awarded annual contracts by Mumbai Cricket Association

Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription

Twenty-two cricketers — 14 male and eight female — have been awarded annual contracts by the Mumbai Cricket Association. The MCA Apex Council has also constituted the Ajinkya Rahane Scholarship Fund, in a bid to recognise the distinguished career of the former India captain who retired from all formats earlier this month.

The decisions were taken at the Apex Council meeting on Thursday (August 27, 2026), with the player contract system being introduced to provide financial support to Mumbai cricketers who are not centrally contracted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) or part of its list of targeted players.

The contracted players have been divided into three grades, with Grade A players receiving ₹12 lakh annually, Grade B ₹8 lakh and Grade C ₹6 lakh.

Siddhesh Lad and Shams Mulani are the two men in Grade A, while Mohit Avasthi, Aakash Anand and Hardik Tamore have been placed in Grade B.

Eight players, including Suved Parkar, Sairaj Patil and Himanshu Singh, form the Grade C list.

Among the women, Humairaa Kaazi and Vrushali Bhagat are the two Grade A players, while Sanika Chalke has been placed in Grade B. Five others, including Prakashika Naik and Fatima Jaffer are the Grade C players.

The MCA had announced earlier this year that it would initiate a player contract system for those outside the BCCI’s central contract and targeted-player structures. The move is aimed at providing greater recognition and financial security to players representing Mumbai.

The Apex Council also approved the Ajinkya Rahane Scholarship Fund in recognition of the former Mumbai captain’s journey from grassroots cricket to leading India in Test cricket. According to an MCA statement, the fund has received a contribution from former MCA president Sharad Pawar and will be used to support grassroots cricketers and the development of maidan cricket.

MCA president Ajinkya Naik said Rahane’s journey and achievements made him “an inspiration for young cricketers” and that the scholarship fund would help create greater opportunities at the grassroots. The Association also proposes to honour Rahane for his contribution to Mumbai and Indian cricket.

Grade C: Prakashika Naik, Zeal D’Mello, Fatima Jaffer, Sadhvi Sanjay, Kashish Nirmal.

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.