CHENNAI: A meeting of the BCCI top brass held on Thursday ended without any decision apropos resuming the domestic season, which was suspended on January 4 in the wake of the third Covid wave. With several states reopening schools on February 1 and Covid's caseload on the decline in prominent cities, the BCCI will hold another meeting on Monday to take a fresh stock of the situation and explore the possibilities to host all the tournaments, including the Ranji Trophy.
The meeting on Thursday was held specifically with regards to hosting the Ranji Trophy after several state associations urged the BCCI to hold the premier domestic tournament. Ever since this newspaper reported BCCI's intentions to not host the Ranji Trophy last week citing a short window available, several state units have been in touch with board officials, pressurising them to conduct the event.
All these units have pointed out that not hosting the Ranji Trophy for a second successive season will have an adverse effect not only on the cricketing front but will also affect hundreds of players, umpires, match officials, and their families which are dependent on it financially. Moreover, several players across the country have been urging the board to look at ways to host the red-ball tournament.
During the meeting on Thursday, it is understood that the board has decided to explore the possibilities of resuming the season. While the chances of Vinoo Mankad and senior Women's T20 are high, it is not certain with regards to the Ranji Trophy. According to an official in the know, the BCCI is likely to have discussions with the state units in the coming days and present a couple of options. What is adding to the issue is the uncertainty surrounding where the IPL will be held. Even if it is home or away, the franchises are looking to start their camps by March 10, meaning the window is shorter.
Hosting the tournament over two legs with the IPL sandwiched in between is one option with knockouts being played in June-July. The other is for the BCCI to go ahead with the Ranji Trophy simultaneously along the IPL. While teams like Mumbai, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Delhi etc would lose several players to IPL, at least half of the 38 sides will not suffer on this front. The BCCI feels state units will not agree to this. Moreover, this will lead to top players in the country missing out on red-ball cricket for a second successive season.