Jay-Shah

Picture Credit: Twitter

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah has stated that the Ranji Trophy will be held in two phases this season. Notably, all the league-stage games would be held in the first phase while the second phase will consist of the knockout stages. The Ranji Trophy was scheduled to start on January 13 but was indefinitely postponed due to the rising coronavirus cases in India.

Last season also, the Ranji Trophy was not held due to the Covid-19 pandemic. BCCI secretary Jay Shah has now given a big update on the Ranji Trophy this season. Jay Shah said, “The Board has decided to conduct the Ranji Trophy this season in two phases. In the first phase, we plan to complete all matches of the league stage while the knockouts will be held in June.

My team is working closely to mitigate any kind of health risk caused by the pandemic, while at the same time ensuring a highly competitive red-ball cricket contest. Ranji Trophy is our most prestigious domestic competition, which has been providing Indian Cricket with an enviable talent pool every year. It is absolutely important that we take all necessary steps to safeguard the interest of this premier event.”

On Thursday, BCCI treasurer Arun Dhumal had also mentioned that with the number of cases coming down, BCCI’s operation team was working on conducting the Ranji Trophy.

Ranji Trophy is backbone of Indian cricket: Ravi Shastri

Earlier, former India head coach Ravi Shastri took to Twitter to give his opinion on the importance of the Ranji Trophy. Shastri said that Ranji Trophy is the backbone of Indian cricket and India's premier domestic red-ball tournament should not be ignored.

"The Ranji Trophy is the backbone of Indian cricket. The moment you start ignoring it, our cricket will be SPINELESS," tweeted Shastri.