CHANGES FOR INDIA'S DOMESTIC SEASON

BCCI technical committee recommends Bihar's return in Ranji Trophy

by Cricbuzz Staff • Last updated on

The technical committee's recommendations also included the introduction of pre-quarterfinals for the upcoming Ranji Trophy edition. © KCA

In accordance with the order of the Supreme Court, the BCCI's technical committee on Tuesday (April 17) recommended the inclusion of Bihar in the upcoming domestic season, including the Ranji Trophy. The recommendations of the committee, which also felt that the North Eastern associate and affiliate members should be considered, will be reviewed by the Committee of Administrators before it is ratified by BCCI's working committee.

The Supreme Court's green signal in July 2016 for the implementation of the Lodha Committee reforms included the reinstatement of Bihar Cricket Association, which had lost its full-membership status in 2001 with BCCI citing poor infrastructure as the reason, with full status membership conferred to Jharkhand. Earlier this year, in January, the Supreme Court directed the BCCI to allow the participation of Bihar in the domestic tournaments organised by the BCCI.

"As an interim measure, the Bihar Cricket Association (BCA) shall be eligible to participate in Ranji Trophy and similar such competitions and the BCA, which has been elected by virtue of the order of this court, shall be in-charge of the same," the bench had said. "This order has been passed keeping in view the cause of cricket."

According to reports, Saba Karim - the general manager of cricket operations who had also played first-class cricket for Bihar before moving to Bengal - played a key role in the inclusion of the Bihar team for the 2018-19 season, with the support of CoA. The technical committee had reservations regarding the return of Bihar, with the possibility of other North Eastern states seeking the court's intervention. However, after the meeting, in which the North-Eastern states' participation was also considered, it went ahead with the recommendation.

"The Technical Committee was unanimous in its meeting today that a team from Bihar shall play the Ranji Trophy and other such tournaments in accordance with the order of the Hon'ble Supreme Court. The Committee in fact has also recommended an option of including the North-Eastern states in the Ranji Trophy keeping in view a course to be followed for development of cricket in the region," Anirudh Chaudhry, BCCI's treasurer, told Cricket Next.

"The matter has been referred to the General Body with recommendations being made accordingly in terms with the procedures of the BCCI. The Committee was mindful of the fact that the total implementation of this decision came under the purview of more than just the Technical Committee and was therefore cautious in the recommendations that were made in order to not transgress beyond the Committee's jurisdiction," he added.

The technical committee's recommendations also included the introduction of pre-quarterfinals for the upcoming Ranji Trophy edition, with the league stage being played among teams divided into four groups, following the home and away format. The technical committee also decided to sandwich the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament between the league and the knock-out stage of the Ranji Trophy. The order of domestic tournaments for the upcoming season would be - Duleep Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy, Ranji Trophy League phase, Mushtaq Ali T20, Ranji Trophy knockouts and Deodhar Trophy.

It was proposed that semi-finals would be played after the super league stage of Mushtaq Ali while the committee also recommended that the Duleep Trophy be played among four teams - from the four different group of the Ranji Trophy - with pink Kookaburra balls to be used for the competition. A similar four-team tournament was also proposed for the Deodhar Trophy.

The Irani Cup is set to be played after the conclusion of the Ranji Trophy.

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