India's batting superstars Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma may be headed for a pay cut despite their standout performances in the recently concluded ODI series against South Africa.

Kohli, 37, dazzled with two centuries, tearing through the Proteas' attack, while 38-year-old Rohit also found runs. Their form has kept them firmly at the top of the ICC ODI batting rankings, with Rohit at No. 1 and Kohli at No. 2. But their salaries are set to dip for one simple reason: they now play only one format.

Both batters were placed in the A+ category of the BCCI's central contracts for the 2024–25 season. However, after India's T20 World Cup triumph in June, they retired from T20Is, and earlier this year they stepped away from Test cricket as well. Their reduced participation means a downgrade is likely.

According to a report from India's PTI news agency, the BCCI will decide their contract status on December 22, when the board holds its 31st Annual General Meeting virtually. Senior BCCI officials are expected to discuss the futures of both Rohit and Kohli during the meeting.

For the ongoing 2024–25 cycle (October 1, 2024 to September 30, 2025), Rohit and Kohli currently share the top bracket with Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja. Last season, their presence in Test cricket kept them in the premier category. But with both now featuring only in ODIs, they are likely to slip to Grade A.

Under BCCI rules, a player must compete in at least 3 Tests, 8 ODIs, or 10 T20Is in a year to retain a central contract in the corresponding format.

BCCI Central Contract Structure (2024–25)

Grade A+ – ₹7 crore
Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja

Grade A – ₹5 crore
Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami, Rishabh Pant

Grade B – ₹3 crore
Suryakumar Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer

Grade C – ₹1 crore
Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar, Mukesh Kumar, Sanju Samson, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Rajat Patidar, Dhruv Jurel, Sarfaraz Khan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ishan Kishan, Abhishek Sharma, Akash Deep, Varun Chakaravarthy, Harshit Rana