Ranji Trophy may witness a change in its format

A new format is likely to take shape in the latest edition of the Ranji Trophy as reported by Cricbuzz. The shortened window for the tournament has compelled BCCI to host the contest at neutral venues. However, due to the forceful shoehorning of the contest into a shorter window, a few teams may end up playing at home.

Going by the reports, the tournament is supposed to start between February 13th and 17th. Even though nothing concrete has come out yet, reports claim that there are two plans on the table to proceed with the Indian domestic extravaganza.

The tournament may kick off at nine different centers with groupings based on the Elite and Plate Teams. As one of the plans go, the two contenders who will be a part of the final will have to play eight games which would also include three Super League matches. Sadly, for the other teams, the contest can come to an end after just three games.

In another plan, the two best teams can play seven games at the maximum while the other 16 teams will be playing only 3 matches at the most. The major concern in both formats is the limited number of games that the teams will get to prove their mettle and talent.

As far as the periphery of the plans go, it suggests that eight groups of four teams will be clubbed in the Elite division while there will be six teams clubbed together in the Plate Division. In the preceding circular for this year’s contest, there were a total of 30 elite and 8 plate division teams. However, the latest plans trimmed down the tournament by two teams. The likeliest teams to face the axe will be Bihar and Chandigarh.

From the Elite division, the topper of each group will qualify for the next round that may see a Super League between the eight teams with two further groups of four teams each. From the Super League, two teams from each group will make the cut for the semi-finals which would secure the fate of the oppositions who will be playing the grand finale.

The other plan suggests, that from every Elite group, two top teams will make the cut for the next round which may mark the onset of the knock-outs from the second round itself. The Plate teams will not be getting a shy at the title due to the shortened window of the tournament. The solitary inducement for the Plate teams this year will be a promotion to the Elite group. Two top teams will make the cut for the Elite division in the following year.

BCCI secretary, Jay Shah recently confirmed that the tournament will be played in two phases and the schedule for the premier domestic first-class competition in the country will be released in the coming days.