Uttarakhand Set To Make Ranji Trophy Debut After 18 Years

The upcoming season of the Ranji Trophy will end the painstaking 18-year wait for Uttarakhand as they will participate in the nation’s premier first-class tournament. The decision was taken after the BCCI decided to form a nine-member ‘consensus committee’ to oversee the state’s domestic debut in the upcoming season.

Committee of Administrators chairman Vinod Rai, on Monday (June 18), confirmed the news. He confirmed that Uttarakhand will be making its Ranji debut this season. Rai said the associations in the state sorted out their differences to ensure the state plays the Ranji Trophy.

“They (all rival associations in Uttarakhand) have swept aside their differences to ensure that a team from Uttarakhand plays Ranji Trophy and other BCCI tournaments from the upcoming season. So, by consensus, a committee has been formed with BCCI nominees in it. It will start working from next week onwards,” Rai said.

The nine-member ‘consensus committee’ comprises six members from different cricket associations in the state. One Uttarakhand government nominee as it currently owns the international stadium in Dehradun. And two BCCI nominees, including the recently retired Professor Ratnakar Shetty.

CoA member Diana Edulji and BCCI CEO Rahul Johri had also attended the meeting.

Meanwhile, the consensus committee is likely to be in function for around a year. After that, the Indian board is likely to form a body. The players of Uttarakhand had to play for other teams because of the lack of BCCI affiliated association.

With Bihar and northeasters states also in line to play the upcoming season, the number of teams competing in Ranji Trophy could go up to 36. The five northeastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Manipur, Nagaland and Meghalaya have conveyed to the Supreme Court that they would like to field independent teams in Ranji Trophy.

In the last season, 28 teams had fought it out for the coveted title. The 28 teams were divided in four groups. And with the number of teams likely to increase this year, there is a possibility that of BCCI creating a second division.

Rai also spoke about the upcoming BCCI SGM on June 22. He reiterated that if the meeting is held, it will be in violation of CoA guidelines issued in March.

On March 16 this year, the CoA had released a 12-point directive for members of the BCCI. One point categorically read: “No meeting of the general body will be allowed without approval of the COA”.