CHENNAI: As the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) released its upcoming domestic calendar on Saturday, there were big omissions too.
The Duleep Trophy and Deodhar Trophy missed space in the calendar and the BCCI did not reveal why it chose to leave out the two tournaments and the Irani Cup for the 2021/22 season that begins in September.
Duleep Trophy and Deodhar Trophy initially made up of zonal teams (North, South, West, East & Central) which have undergone several changes in the format, have been regular fixtures in the domestic calendar since they were introduced in 1961 and 1973 respectively. For all the talk of these tournaments losing relevance, it still remains a popular one among the domestic players, as it gives them the opportunity to battle with the best in the country.
The omission from the calendar this time doesn't come as a surprise. Especially because the men's calendar had to be cut short to accommodate the IPL. With the suspended IPL slotted for September-October, apart from sacrificing bilateral series that would have helped Team India get ample matches to fine-tune their 15 for the T20 World Cup, it is also eating into the men's domestic calendar. With the men's season beginning only in October and the need to slot Ranji Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy means that the BCCI has only a little over five months to complete the season.
Logistics aside, there have been signs in the past of these tournaments being left out. Most notably during the 2017/18 season, the BCCI scrapped the Duleep Trophy. Fingers were pointed at the CoA, who was running the BCCI then, and following backlash and the uproar of Sourav Ganguly, who was heading the technical committee, the tournament was added to the calendar. However, unlike then, there isn't a whisper now when the former India captain is heading the BCCI.
So which brings us to the point, is Duleep Trophy losing its relevance? The answer would be an emphatic no. Since being converted into a three-team event (India Blue, India Red, and India Green), the national selectors have been handpicking the top 45 players in the country. If the decision to play the 2019-20 season with the red ball over pink brought criticism, it now finds itself totally ignored.
Had BCCI slotted the event with the pink ball, it would have provided those waiting in the wings a chance to get familiar with it. More so, when pink-ball Tests are going to be a regular fixture in India's international home season.
With India's A-team program, which has played a huge role in the national team's ascendency to the top also suspended because of the pandemic and showing no signs of resuming, the Duleep Trophy would have also helped the selectors keep an eye on the fringe players. Ditto with the women's domestic season, where the multi-day tournament is missing despite the fact that the national team is slated to play a Test in each bilateral series going forward.
That these decisions have been taken in the absence of a senior tournament committee is also not lost in the bigger scheme of things. Following the resignation of Saba Karim (general manager, cricket operations) who was handling the domestic events, there is a vacuum that needs to be filled. Despite the domestic season expanding to over 2,100 matches, the calendar doesn't begin before September, which in itself contributes to the problem. Having lost one year to the pandemic, there is a need to make up for it, and curtailing the season isn't the way to do it.