BCCI Looking At The Longer Gap Between Ranji Trophy Games, National Selectors To Pick Duleep Trophy

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) plans to restructure the domestic circuit beginning with the 2024–25 season, based on proposals given by Secretary Jay Shah to the Apex Council.

A four-day interval instead of three between Ranji Trophy games would help players manage their workload better, and the competition will be played in two stages to prevent weather-related disruptions caused by fog during the winter in north India.

Another proposal is to grant the domestic captains’ requests for extended rest intervals between teams. For example, Shardul Thakur brought up the matter during the most recent Ranji Trophy semifinal. Sai Kishore, the captain of Tamil Nadu, agreed with Thakur’s viewpoint. A similar suggestion has even been made by Sunil Gavaskar.

“There will be an increased gap between matches to allow players sufficient time for recovery and to maintain peak performance throughout the season,” the note to the Apex Council stated.

BCCI proposes to eliminate the toss from the CK Nayudu Trophy domestic competition: 

The proposal is to do away with the toss in the domestic CK Nayudu Trophy competition, according to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The decision of whether to bowl or bat will go to the visiting team.

“The toss will be eliminated for the CK Nayudu Trophy matches. Instead, the visiting team will have the right to choose whether to bat or bowl first,” Jay Shah said, and he also suggested a new points system for the under-23 red ball competition.

“The CK Nayudu Trophy will implement a new points system aimed at promoting balanced performances. This includes awarding points for batting and bowling performances in the first inning, in addition to points for the first inning lead or outright win,” Jay Shah added.

Four teams chosen by the national selectors will compete in the Duleep Trophy competition to open the domestic season. This indicates that the inter-zonal format for this red-ball competition is being proposed to be dropped by the BCCI.