Taskin Ahmed becomes Bangladesh’s No.1 cricketer as he secures A+ contract

Bangladesh fast bowler Taskin Ahmed has received a major boost amidst his team's recent struggles across formats. His category in the central contracts list has been upgraded by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB).

The proposed draft of the central contracts list was put up in front of the BCB directors during their previous meeting held on February 3. According to that draft, Taskin Ahmed has received an upgrade in the list.

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Taskin Ahmed in Category A+

According to Cricbuzz, the BCB national selection panel has put Taskin Ahmed in the A+ category which is the highest category in Bangladesh's central contracts list. There are a total of 22 players in the central contracts list for 2025.

The changes in the contracts were done to recognize the top performance of the country in international cricket. The board has returned to the universal grading system which involves dividing the players into five categories - A+, A, B, C, and D rather than dividing them into Test, ODI, and T20I categories earlier.

Taskin Ahmed has transformed himself into an all-format cricketer for Bangladesh in recent times. In the Champions Trophy 2025, he picked up 2 wickets in as many games at an average of 32 and an economy rate of 4.

Taskin Ahmed also made a return to the Test side recently when he played against Bangladesh in the two Tests in West Indies. Taskin emerged as the highest wicket-taker of the series with 11 wickets in 2 matches at an average of 18.63.

Which players are in Category A?

Top order Najmul Hossain Shanto, wicketkeeper-batter Litton Das, allrounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz, and veteran wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim have been placed in the A category. All these players are a regular part of the team with only Litton Das not playing the Champions Trophy this year.

All these players play all the formats of the game except Mushfiqur Rahim, who retired from T20Is on September 4, 2022, after the Asia Cup concluded in the UAE. But he is still a part of Bangladesh's Test and ODI teams.

Players for Category B, C, D

Category B includes experienced batters like Mominul Haque and Mahmudullah. Veteran fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman and the left-arm spinner Taijul Islam are also in this category. Mominul is only considered for Test cricket while Mahmudullah has already retired from both Tests and T20Is.

Opening batters Soumya Sarkar, Shadman Islam, Tanzid Hasan Tamim, batter Jaker Ali, fast bowlers Shoriful Islam, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, and spinners Rishad Hossain and Mahedi Hasan are in Category C of this list.

Only two players are there in Category D. Those two players are the left-arm spinner Nasum Ahmed and the fast bowler Khaled Ahmed.

Suspense over Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah

The board hasn't approved the list yet as it needs to be decided whether the veteran cricketers Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah need to be given a central contract or not.

Both the players are aiming to be available for the 2027 ODI World Cup but the selectors have already insisted on the performance of both the veterans in the format. Both have immense experience and can prove to be the point of difference for Bangladesh.

Both of them had a disappointing Champions Trophy recently. Rahim scored just 2 runs in the two matches he played while Mahmudullah scored just 4 runs in the only match he played during the tournament.