Mumbai, April 17 -- The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is expected to announce the central contracts for the 2025-26 season by the end of this week, according to BCCI sources.

As per sources, star spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel are likely to be promoted from Grade B to Grade A. Middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer is also expected to make a return to the contract list after being dropped for the 2024-25 season.

The sources further said that senior players Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Jasprit Bumrah are likely to retain their places in the A+ grade.

Kuldeep and Axar have been among India's top performers during their two recent ICC title wins--the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 and the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.

In the T20 W...