While cricket may not be the most popular sport in New Zealand, its team has had significant success at the global level.
And the players? They often receive applause for their talent and sportsmanship.
The Kiwi players’ exceptional talent further earns them the central contract from New Zealand Cricket (NZC), the country’s governing body.
In this article, we’ll look at the New Zealand cricketers with central contracts and their salaries.
New Zealand Cricketers with Central Contracts
On June 3, 2025, NZC announced the list of centrally contracted players for the 2025-26 season. As per the list, NZC handed over central contracts to 20 players.
While 16 of those players have been retained from the previous cycle, four new faces complete the list. Adi Ashok, Mitchell Hay, Muhammad Abbas, and Zak Foulkes have earned their first NZC central contracts.
Ajaz Patel, Ish Sodhi, Josh Clarkson and Tim Southee weren’t retained on the list for this season. In Southee’s case, he retired from international cricket in December 2024.
Those on the central contract list have to make themselves available for all of New Zealand’s international matches in the season. Additionally, they need to play in the Super Smash – New Zealand’s domestic T20 league.
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Here’s the list of New Zealand’s cricketers with central contracts in the 2025/26 season:
Tom Blundell (retained)
Michael Bracewell (retained)
Mark Chapman (retained)
Jacob Duffy (retained)
Matt Henry (retained)
Kyle Jamieson (retained)
Tom Latham (retained)
Daryl Mitchell (retained)
Henry Nicholls (retained)
Will O’Rourke (retained)
Glenn Phillips (retained)
Rachin Ravindra (retained)
Mitchell Santner (retained)
Ben Sears (retained)
Nathan Smith (retained)
Will Young (retained)
Muhammad Abbas (new)
Adithya Ashok (new)
Zak Foulkes (new)
Mitchell Hay (new)
Central contracts and salaries for each team
Indian Cricketers Salaries and Central Contract List
New Zealand Cricketers Salaries and Central Contracts List
England Cricketers Salaries and Central Contracts List
Pakistan Cricketers Salaries and Central Contracts List
South Africa Cricketers Salaries and Central Contracts List
Bangladesh Cricketers Salaries and Central Contracts List
New Zealand Cricketers with Casual Contracts
Apart from the central contracts, NZC also awards a ‘Casual Playing Agreement’ to a few players. Under this, players make themselves available for a select few series or tournaments.
For the 2025/26 season, four prominent Kiwi players have signed up under the casual playing agreement.
The casual contracted players are:
Kane Williamson
Devon Conway
Tim Seifert
Lockie Ferguson
New Zealand Cricketers Contract Categories
Unlike some teams, NZC doesn’t categorise their central contracts. Rather, the board ranks players based on their previous season’s performance and their availability for the upcoming season across all formats.
The contribution in Test cricket carries 1.5 points, while for ODIs and T20Is, players earn a point each. The head coach and the selector combine the points to rank players, which determines their salaries.
New Zealand Cricketers’ Salaries
A New Zealand player with a central contract earns a salary between NZ$165,000 and NZ$318,000.
Since the board ranks the contracted players, the top-ranked player bags NZ$318,000 annually. And those ranked lower, obviously, take home NZ$165,000.
New Zealand Cricketers’ Match Fees
On top of their annual retainers, New Zealand cricketers receive match fees for every appearance in an international match.
For a Test match, a Kiwi player will get NZ$10,750. An ODI appearance will see them receive NZ$4250. And for a T20I appearance, they will earn NZ$2750.
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