The Hindu : Sport : BCCI to stage domestic Twenty20

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Sunday, Jan 21, 2007
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BCCI to stage domestic Twenty20

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: As expected, the BCCI's Technical Committee, which met here on Saturday, adopted the ICC's guidelines for staging a domestic Twenty20 tournament.

"We've decided to play the domestic Twenty20 either in the last week of March or the first week of April," said BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah. "The venues will be decided by the Fixtures Committee, and the rules and regulations of the ICC will be implemented."

The tournament, said Shah, will be formatted along the lines of the Ranji Trophy one-day tournament. State Associations will first play within their zone to identify the top two sides. These sides — distributed into two groups of five — will then play a league format. Each group's top side will contest the final.

Doctored wickets

The Technical Committee, chaired by Sunil Gavaskar, also decided to take steps to prevent doctoring of wickets in the Ranji Trophy. From the next season, members of the Pitches Committee would monitor the preparation of wickets for four days preceding the tie, said Shah.

The recommendation to play the Ranji Trophy Super League semifinals and final on neutral venues was "discussed, but some felt the home side shouldn't be denied advantage," said Shah. Consequently, the matter will be discussed with the coaches and captains of India's first class teams at a seminar in March.

Shah pointed out, however, that all inter-zonal tournaments such as the Duleep Trophy and the Deodhar Trophy would be played on neutral venues that have been assessed as having good tracks.

The committee reviewed the Ranji Trophy's format and points structure, but decided to discuss it further with the captains and coaches at the seminar before making changes.

SG Test ball

The committee also decided to continue with the SG Test ball in the Ranji Trophy.

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