R Ashwin has been ruled out of IPL 2017. (Source: BCCI) R Ashwin has been ruled out of IPL 2017. (Source: BCCI)

A six-month long home season seems to have taken its toll on the Indian team cricketers with as many as six of them nursing injuries. The subsequent IPL absence is a trickle-down effect. According to the BCCI release, Virat Kohli, Ravindra Jadeja and Umesh Yadav will miss a segment of the IPL 10, while R Ashwin, Murali Vijay and KL Rahul are ruled out of the tournament. The BCCI’s player insurance for the IPL, however, will properly compensate the injured national players.

What is IPL player insurance?

It’s an insurance policy for all the centrally contracted players. The scheme had been introduced before the fourth edition of the tournament, following a discussion between then BCCI secretary N Srinivasan and the Indian team players. It compensates the players in case of IPL non-appearance/unavailability because of injury/accident and illness/sickness.

Who are eligible?

If a contracted player picks up an injury while playing for the country and misses the IPL fully or partially, he comes under the insurance scheme and becomes eligible for compensation. The scheme is not applicable to non-contracted players.

How is the compensation amount determined?

The compensation amount gets proportionately adjusted according to a player’s total contract amount vis-a-vis the number of matches he misses. For example, the BCCI release says Kohli “will undergo rehabilitation after sustaining an injury to his right shoulder and his recovery will be assessed in the second week of April to determine an exact return to play date for IPL 2017”. So the Royal Challengers Bangalore captain is going to miss at least three group league matches. Given that Kohli’s salary for the season is Rs 15 crore, he will be compensated proportionately as per his total contract amount. In case, of partial absence, however, a player’s compensation is equally shared by the BCCI and the respective franchise. If a player misses the tournament in its entirety, the BCCI pays the whole amount.

Does a contracted player become eligible for compensation if injury occurs during a BCCI domestic tournament?

Yes. MS Dhoni, for example, is retired from Test cricket but features in Grade A of the BCCI contracts. Suppose if he had suffered an injury while playing the Vijay Hazare Trophy for Jharkhand, making him unavailable for the IPL fully or partly, he would have been eligible for compensation. That’s because he has had been part of the BCCI’s domestic programme.

How much does the BCCI spend for the IPL player insurance?

Alliance Insurance is the BCCI’s insurance partner and the total sum insured for 30 players— centrally contracted and also part of the IPL— this term is Rs 128.7 crore. The cricket board pays a premium in excess of Rs 4 crore. The insurance is applicable only to the 45-day IPL season but the period of insurance is 12 months from the commencement of the policy. The BCCI has separate player insurance schemes for other domestic tournaments.

Who gives feedbacks to the BCCI on players’ injuries?

The Indian team physio and the BCCI medical team. After a player gets injured after reporting for the IPL, the respective IPL franchise’s physio and doctor submit the medical report. All medical advices should be supported by tests reports. If a player is ruled out of the tournament after reporting for the IPL (and before playing a game), then also the compensation is equally shared by the BCCI and the respective IPL franchise.

What happens if a BCCI contracted player picks up an injury during the IPL?

His compensation has to be covered by the IPL franchise in that case. Franchises’ have their separate insurance schemes for the players.

Does a player get money if he sits out?

The Indian players in the IPL teams, capped or uncapped, get full money irrespective of their presence in the playing XI. An overseas player gets 50 per cent of his contracted money if he doesn’t play. For example, if Steve Smith plays seven group league games for Rising Pune Supergiant and sits out in another seven, he will get 50 per cent of his contracted money for the matches he was out of the XI.

Any previous examples of players being compensated?

Among the high-profile cricketers, Ishant Sharma, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra had been compensated by the BCCI for missing the IPL due to injuries.

What happens if a non-contracted player gets injured while playing for India?

The issue begs for clarity. Earlier, an Indian team appearance automatically earned a player a Grade C contract. But a departure from the norm has been made this year as the BCCI didn’t hand Suresh Raina and Abhinav Mukund central contracts despite playing for the country.

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