Graded payments have been adopted in countries like Australia, South Africa and Sri Lanka and many senior Indian cricketers over the years have felt strongly on the issue. Their contention was that the existing system in India defies logic.

``It's only fair that a player like Mohammed Azharuddin with over 300 One-Day Internationals appearances should come under a different scale of payment than a player who is making his international debut,'' opined BCCI president Raj Singh Dungarpur.

Prof Ratnakar Shetty, the manager of the Indian cricket team which toured Sri Lanka in 1997, made a plea for graded payment to the players in the post-tour report. However, powerful forces within the BCCI turned down the suggestion saying that the cricketers should declare themselves professionals to receive such treatment.

But the proposal finally found favour when the BCCI, atits recent working committee in Calcutta on August 3, decided to take up the matter at the earliest. It's reliably learnt that matter got an impetus from none other than Jagmohan Dalmiya, who had done much in giving the BCCI a player-friendly image.

Mr Jaywant Lele and Mr Kishore Rungta, the BCCI honarary secretary and treasurer respectively, have already begun the process of talking to cricketers, past and present, before formulating the report.

Meanwhile, senior Indian cricketers are expected to use the pre-Lanka tour practice stint in Chennai to discuss the matter and give their views to the BCCI.

Mr Dungarpur said that the BCCI, on its part, may talk to other boards to ascertain how the system work in their countries. ``We are closing on it (the gradation) and maybe we may arrive at a decision by the time of the AGM (annual general meeting).'' The dates and venue of the BCCI AGM will be decided at the Working Committee meeting of the board, here, on August 20.

Dilip Vengsarkar said he was not sureif the gradation is good for the game. ``I feel that the playing eleven should get more than those in the sidelines. Because the reserves get logo and match fees in the same proportion as the playing members there have been instances of players (lacking in confidence and self belief) content on staying in the reserves without striving to get into the final eleven. I think the reserves must be pushed hard. The competitive edge will do much good to the game.''