Ranji Trophy 2022: State Association Requests BCCI To Hold Ranji Trophy- Reports

Several state associations have requested the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to consider holding Ranji Trophy season.

The move comes days after reports emerged that the Indian board is likely to scrap the premier domestic tournament for the second successive year owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

BCCI yet to take a call on Ranji Trophy 2022

The Ranji Trophy was initially scheduled to begin on January 13 but just before India’s red-ball domestic tournament would get underway, teams started to record COVID-19 cases. Seven members of the Bengal team tested positive for the dreadful virus at the start of the year.

Mumbai all-rounder Shivam Dube and team video analyst Ganesh Tyagi contacted COVID-19 ahead of the season.

As a precautionary measure, the BCCI had to delay the start of the tournament and not just the Ranji Trophy but also the Cooch Behar, CK Nayudu and the senior women’s T20 tournaments were postponed.

“BCCI does not want to compromise the safety of the players, support staff, match officials and other participants involved and hence, has decided to put the three tournaments on hold till further notice. The BCCI will continue to assess the situation and take a call on the start of the tournaments accordingly,” BCCI secretary Jay Shah had issued a statement on January 4.

“BCCI thanks and continues to appreciate the efforts of the healthcare workers, state associations, players, support staff, match officials and all the service providers who put their best foot forward to host more than 700 matches across 11 tournaments in the current 2021-22 domestic season,” Shah further added in his statement.

State units want BCCI to host group matches before IPL 2022

Although the Indian board had decided to postpone the Ranji Trophy for just 15 days, with the rising COVID-19 cases across most of the cities in India, there are fewer chances that they will go ahead with the red-ball tournament.

According to a report by The New Indian Express, around eight state units have asked the BCCI to at least explore the option of hosting the group stages before the IPL 2022 kicks off.

Ranji Trophy was last year scrapped by the BCCI, even though the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (T20) and Vijay Hazare Trophy (ODI) have completed two seasons since the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the world.

Also Read: BCCI Postpones Ranji Trophy, Col C K Nayudu Trophy & Senior Women’s T20 League For 2021-22 Season Due To Rising COVID Cases