New Delhi: In a move which will give the next crop of cricketers get a fair shot at National team, the BCCI has decided to change the format of the Deodhar Trophy Inter-zonal one-day tournament making it into a three-team affair from current five zones vying for top spot.
The BCCI has decided to implement the suggestions given by the Anil Kumble-led technical committee where the Deodhar Trophy will feature four 50-overs matches across five days from January 24-28.
It will be on the lines of NKP Salve Challenger Trophy where there will be three teams. Just like the Challenger series, the Vijay Hazare Trophy champions will be one of the teams, which will compete with two other teams (India A or India Red etc).
Now these two teams will be selected by the national selectors from the performance of Vijay Hazare Trophy. "The Deodhar trophy will be played on a three-team format which comprises of the champion team of the Vijay Hazare tournament and two other teams which will be selected by the Senior National selectors," the release stated.
Also Vijay Hazare Trophy's national one-day championship's format is in for a change from the zonal to knock-out, as all teams on basis of performance will now be divided into groups just like Ranji Trophy.
"Starting this year, the senior Men one-day and the T20 tournaments will be played on a Group basis (like Ranji Trophy) and not on an Intra Zonal basis. Being the first time, the teams have been divided into four groups and these groups have been made based on last year's performance in the respective tournaments," the release stated.
A new Under-19 Challenger tournament has been introduced in the junior level this year which will feature three teams selected by the Junior National Selectors and provide yet another opportunity to all the players to perform, before the national squad is selected for the Under-19 World Cup, to be played in Bangladesh in January.
Two new tournaments are being introduced for women cricketers from this year, an Inter state and then Inter Zonal one-day Under-23 tournament and a three-day Senior Women Inter Zonal tournament, which will provide more opportunities to women cricketers.
In all BCCI plans to hold 900 matches through the nine-month calendar year which they have computed to "2100 cricket days".
The logic behind 2100 cricket days is that on a particular Ranji Trophy date, if supposedly nine four-day matches are held across the country, it will be calculated as 9x4=36 cricket days. Similarly five one-day matches played on the same date will be calculated as five cricket days.
