5 Indian players who missed out on central contract for 2016/17

#1 Suresh Raina

Arguably the most surprising and perhaps unlucky omission after BCCI announced the list of players and the central contracts was Suresh Raina. The all-rounder has been an integral part of the Indian limited-overs side for more than a decade but after being given a Grade B contract (50 lakh) in 2015/16, he wasn't given a central contract this time around.

While it is true that he hasn't played an ODI in 2016, he was still part of the T20I side that took part in both the Asia Cup and the World T20. While the likes of Yuvraj Singh and Ashish Nehra have gotten contracts, Raina hasn't.

Extra Cover: 5 players who played for India without central contract in 2015/16

What makes it even more puzzling is that players like Jayant Yadav and Karun Nair, who have only played a few Tests, have a central contract. Even Shardul Thakur, who is yet to play for India has a Grade C contract, while Suresh Raina, India's third-leading run-getter in T20Is doesn't have one right now, just a couple of months ahead of the Champions Trophy.

While not having a contract doesn't decrease his chances of playing in the major tournament, it certainly highlights that he has gone down in the pecking order while other players who are older than him, have gone up.