BOARD OF CONTROL FOR CRICKET IN INDIA (BCCI) has decided a substantial increase in match payments for women’s domestic cricketers following its Apex Council meeting on Monday. In a significant step towards pay parity in domestic cricket, women players are now set to earn match fees that are almost on par with their male counterparts.
Under the revised pay structure, women players will receive Rs 50,000 per day for every domestic one-day and multi-day match. Previously, senior women cricketers in the playing XI were paid Rs 20,000 per match day, while those on the bench earned Rs 10,000.
As reported by Cricbuzz, the new rates will apply to all members of the playing XI. Non-playing squad members will receive Rs 25,000 per match. For T20 fixtures, players in the playing XI will be paid Rs 25,000 per match, while those not playing will earn Rs 12,500.
In junior domestic tournaments, the revised daily fee will be Rs 25,000 for players in the playing XI and Rs 12,500 for reserves. For junior T20 matches, the fees will be Rs 12,500 for the playing XI and Rs 6,250 for non-playing members.
According to a BCCI note quoted by Cricbuzz, “On average, a senior woman cricketer receives around Rs 2 lakh for a season if the team only plays the league stages of senior tournaments.” With the revised structure, seasonal earnings for women players are expected to rise significantly.
This move brings women’s domestic match fees much closer to those in the men’s game. At present, male domestic cricketers are paid Rs 60,000 per day if they have played more than 40 Ranji Trophy matches, Rs 50,000 for those with 21–40 appearances, and Rs 40,000 for players with 20 matches or fewer. Reserve players in men’s cricket receive Rs 30,000, Rs 25,000, and Rs 20,000 per day respectively across the same categories.
Beyond players, the BCCI has also approved a hike in payments for umpires and match referees. Umpires officiating in league matches of domestic tournaments will now receive a uniform fee of Rs 40,000 per day, irrespective of their earlier grading. For knockout matches, higher fees ranging from Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000 per day have been proposed, depending on the tournament and match importance.
The same revised fee structure will apply to the match referees. They will be paid Rs 40,000 per day for league matches and between Rs 50,000 and Rs 60,000 per day for knockout fixtures.
