The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced a consolidated cash prize of Rs. 125 crore for the Indian men’s T20 World Cup-winning squad. The amount is a little over three times than the combined figure that was distributed as bonus after the Men in Blue won the 2011 ODI World Cup.

Jay Shah, the BCCI secretary, in a statement announced the decision on social media and through a statement. Later on, while interacting with mediapersons who are stranded in Barbados along with India’s contingent due to a hurricane, Shah confirmed that the total amount includes “players, coaches, support staff and the selectors”.

Neither in the statement nor during the interaction did Shah specify the individual amount for each category, as has been the convention in Indian cricket. In 2011, each member of Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s squad was paid Rs. 2 crore, the coaching and support staff members were paid Rs. 50 lakh each while the selectors were handed a bonus of Rs. 25 lakh each.

“The BCCI announced a reward of Rs. 2 crores to every playing member of the side, and Rs. 50 lakhs to every member of the support staff,” the 2010-11 BCCI annual report notes.

While the report doesn’t specify the selectors’ bonus, Sportstar confirmed the amount with multiple members of the five-member selection panel chaired by K. Srikkanth.

Considering the fact that India’s support staff comprised a dozen members in 2011, approximately Rs. 39 crore were distributed as an incentive for winning the ODI World Cup at home. While the incentive has increased 3.2 times in 2024, the BCCI’s coffers have been richer multifold.

In 2010-11, the BCCI balance sheet showed a surplus income over expenditure of Rs.

189.72 crore while the balance at the end of the financial year was Rs. 286.87 crore. Cut to 2021-22, the last balance sheet available in public domain, and the amount has multiplied whoppingly.

While the surplus income over expenditure in 2021-22 was Rs. 868.14 crore, the balance as on March 31, 2022 was Rs. 5,197.71 crore.

Interestingly, in 2011, minutes after Dhoni hit the winning six, the BCCI had announced an incentive of Rs. 1 crore to each player. However, after the players expressed their displeasure, the bonus amount was revised to Rs.

2 crore per player.