Hyderabad: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) unveiled the domestic cricket calendar for the 2024-25 season on Thursday.
"The Domestic Home Season 2024-25 has been meticulously planned, taking into account multiple factors to fortify the core of domestic cricket while prioritizing player well-being," BCCI Secretary Jay Shah said in a media statement.
"The season will commence with red-ball cricket, featuring the prestigious Duleep Trophy. Four teams selected by the Senior Men’s Selection Committee will compete in the Duleep Trophy, starting in Anantapur from September 5. This will be followed by the Irani Cup and the Ranji Trophy, featuring the first five league matches."
"Next, the white-ball tournaments will take centre stage, beginning with the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, followed by the Vijay Hazare Trophy. The Ranji Trophy will then resume with the final two league matches, culminating in the knockout stages," the BCCI secretary said.
The BCCI said that to prioritise player welfare, an extended gap between matches has been incorporated, ensuring ample time for recovery and sustained peak performance are some of the aims set for the upcoming season.
It also said that all women's challenger tournaments, spanning one-day, T20, and Multi-Day formats, will witness teams selected by the national selectors.
It also said that the CK Nayudu Trophy introduces a revamped points system aimed at fostering balanced performances.
"This includes the attribution of points for batting and bowling prowess in the first innings, alongside points for securing the first innings lead or achieving an outright victory. A thorough review will be conducted post-season to evaluate the efficacy of the new points system, with a potential implementation in the Ranji Trophy for subsequent seasons," the BCCI said.
The cricket body also said that In an innovative move, the toss will be abolished for CK Nayudu Trophy matches.
"Instead, the visiting team will be vested with the privilege to elect whether to bat or bowl first. Efforts have been undertaken to mitigate the impact of weather disruptions on fixtures," it said.
The Ranji Trophy will be played in Elite and Plate formats and in the home and away format.
The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, the domestic T20 competition, will begin on November 23, while the Vijay Hazare Trophy, will start on December 21.The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy will be played at Visakhapatnam, Indore, Mumbai, Rajkot, and Hyderabad while the knock-out games will be played in Bengaluru.
The Vijay Hazare Trophy, which is the domestic List-A tournament, will be played in Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Vizag, Mumbai and Hyderabad while the knockout matches will be played at Vadodara. The Irani Cup, which is played between the current Ranji Trophy champions and the Rest of India will be played in Mumbai or at a neutral venue beginning October 1.
The Duleep Trophy will be played in Anantapur. Domestic giants and current Ranji Trophy champions Mumbai are placed in Group A along with Baroda, Services, Jammu and Kashmir, Tripura, Maharashtra, Odisha and Meghalaya.
Vidarbha have been placed in Group B, while Bengal and Madhya Pradesh have been placed in Group C. While Tamil Nadu and Delhi are placed in Group D, Goa, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh are placed in the Plate Group.
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