All of us are in the middle of a severe pandemic that has swept the globe. Several sporting competitions and several bi-lateral games have been either postponed or cancelled altogether. Legendary Tennis competitions like French Open & Wimbledon were cancelled for the year. Formula 1 which usually starts in the month of March, started in June. Several other sports were disrupted. The entire sporting world is completely messed up. Cricket is not an exception.
Over the last 6 months, only a couple of test series were completed albeit under closed door. IPL, which was supposed to have been held in March & April is scheduled to start in September. Whatever sporting events are currently going on, they are all going on behind closed doors. Hence, sporting bodies around the world are trying their best to get the games started. On the contrary, BCCI have announced that the Indian cricket’s premier event, Ranji Trophy, will be severely curtailed or maybe cancelled completely. This is utter nonsense.
Possible scenarios
- Truncated season starts on November 19 as planned. Probability: bleak
- Truncated season starts in December and ends [for men] before IPL 2021. Probability: possible
- Truncated season starts in January and ends [for men] before IPL 2021. Probability: likely
- No domestic season at all, IPL 2021 begins on schedule. Probability: not ruled out
India’s domestic season usually starts in the month of October but the preparation for the domestic season starts much before that. It is the middle of September but the BCCI have not yet come up with a concrete proposal to conduct the Ranji Trophy. It is perfectly understandable if the BCCI wants to delay the tournament but to cancel it altogether is outrageous.
According to a BCCI official, “it is possible that there will be no domestic season at all, or we start in December-January”.
What are the chances of the first class season getting cancelled completely? I would say extremely high. Infact, there is a 99% chance that the first class competition is cancelled. This is irresponsibility at its best.
Importance of Ranji Trophy
Ranji Trophy is the bread and butter of any first class player. There are so many cricketers who depend on the Ranji Trophy for their livelihood because only a few players have a full-time job. The players are paid for every game. According to Robin Bist, the Rajasthan veteran, the players are paid 35,000 Rs per day. With a full season, each player will make around 15 lakhs. I do agree that this is not a small amount but the players will be paid this amount only if the games are held.
With the current uncertainty created by the board, it is not clear whether Ranji Trophy this year will go ahead or not. If the tournament stands cancelled, the players will lose a lot of money. Several of them will have pending payments, household expenditure, medical etc. If the board decides to cancel the competition, they will have to ensure that the players are paid the full amount for the whole year. It is not difficult to decide who those players will be. Whoever, played for their state last year, will be considered to have played this year as well and they will be compensated.
The former general manager
Prof. Ratnakar Shetty, the former general manager says that the board does not have the finance to compensate the players because bi-lateral series will not be played. Isn’t this funny? The board which is super rich is crying for money. This is utter nonsense.
It is not just the players who stands to lose. There are so many persons who are directly or indirectly connected to the game who stands to lose even more than the players. The scorers, groundsmen, umpires and the list goes on. Yes, the board will have forego a reasonable part of their cash pool but it is something they can recoup easily in the subsequent years.
What about the promising players?
It is this competition that supplies players to the national team and zonal teams. Every first class player prepares himself so well that by the end of the season, some of them are in the national limelight. Players like Shubnam Gill, Prithvi Shaw, Nagarkoti, Mavi and others who are in the reckoning for the national team will be setback by a year. Yes, they are all part of various IPL teams but IPL can never ever substitute Ranji Trophy. Selection for Test team depends on proper first-class competition. This will only help Indian cricket. Unfortunately, BCCI wants to disrupt the supply chain itself.
Board ensured that IPL is held
The board did not leave any stone unturned to stage IPL in a foreign land. The board were so desperate that they seem to have felt that their very survival depends on staging the IPL even if it is not in India. Not only have the board successfully scheduled the games but they were able to plan a full IPL and not a truncated one. If the board can be so meticulous, why is this casual attitude towards the domestic game? Shouldn’t the media ask BCCI about it? IPL benefits the board greatly and a few players personally. What about the payment for the 100s of first-class players?
At present, there are some openings in the Indian team. Bowlers needs backup, test middle order is shaky, less competition for spinners etc. Inorder to fill these slots, the selectors will have to depend on the current performance of the players playing in Ranji Trophy. Now that that maybe taken away, where will the selectors turn to? If someone gets injured in Australia or if a few are struck down by the virus how will the selectors be able to judge the form of the player’s replacement without any four or five day game?
Conclusion
Ideally, by now atleast one round of Ranji games should have been completed. Afterall, it is Ranji Trophy that no one watches. So, there is no worry of crowds in the stadium. Instead of IPL, the BCCI must have concentrated on staging the first class games. If they have to go ahead with IPL, let them but at the sametime, Ranji Trophy games are mandatory. BCCI will do well to schedule a complete first class season even if it means only Ranji Trophy and 50 over competition. The Indian team needs players who are fit and in form for the Australian series. Ranji Trophy will go a longway in helping players remain match fit.