curtailed Ranji Trophy, extension of window for Indian Premier League (IPL) in the Future Tours Programme 2023-31 and women’s domestic cricket will dominate the agenda at Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) apex council meeting scheduled for January 17. Unlike the Annual General Meeting held last month, the upcoming meeting will be held virtually.
BCCI is looking at a curtailed domestic season from February and it’s likely to be held in the same six bio-bubbles that were created for the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Domestic cricket will dominate the agenda and a call will be taken on junior and women’s categories as well.
“As of now, there is a 90 percent chance that Ranji Trophy will start in February and we will have the same six bio-bubbles created for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The groupings will also be the same — five groups of six teams each and one group of eight teams,” a senior BCCI source told the Press Trust of India.
The source also said that the league phase of Ranji Trophy will be held before IPL 2021, which is scheduled to start in April while the knockout stages andthe final rounds will be held after the T20 tournament.
Meanwhile, the BCCI will also approach the International Cricket Council to ask for a bigger window for IPL in the 2023-31 FTP. Notably, the IPL Governing Council approved 10 teams to be part of the T20 tournament from 2022.
The IPL will require a minimum of two months window and the other boards need to agree to have their players released for the better part of the tournament.
The ICC tax related issue will also come up for discussion and it is already decided that India will ask the global body to deduct from its annual revenue of USD 490 million in case they don’t get exemption from the central government on existing tax laws. The council will be intimated as to what’s the government’s stance.
