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‘Neutral’ Ranji Trophy season ushers in uncertain future
KOLKATA: With a new team in Chhattisgarh and an unprecedented neutral venue regulation, the Ranji Trophy heads into an unknown future from Thursday. Since it will
KOLKATA: With a new team in Chhattisgarh and an unprecedented neutral venue regulation, the Ranji Trophy heads into an unknown future from Thursday. Since it will run parallel to the international home season, players on the fringes will have enough opportunities to make their cases heard. Neutral venues will take out the bias of associations towards their teams but it remains to be seen how much it would ultimately matter.
In this age of information, everybody knows how the pitch normally behaves at different centres. With no pressure from local officials, curators are expected to stick to the norm and produce a safe pitch. Ultimately, there shouldn’t be much of a surprise to an unknown venue. With pacers already leading the bowling charts for some years now, spinners will have to toil harder on neutral pitches. But the worst repercussion of this rule is that it might completely dissociate the local associations from Ranji Trophy. From local officials to club coaches, upcoming players and even the odd state team supporter, everyone will have to find a good reason to watch a game between two teams that might not even belong to the same group as theirs. Enjoying a competitive game sounds fine but without some level of attachment can be a dull exercise. The neutral venue concept might also confuse the next crop of players when they go on to play international cricket where home and away is the norm.
With so much international cricket being played at home till the next IPL, the Ranji Trophy runs the threat of being turned into a footnote. Like the Duleep Trophy, at least some matches could have been played under artificial lights with the pink ball. But dilly-dallying by the BCCI has put paid to that too. The Ranji Trophy will run its course and produce a winner. But the grassroots connect might be changed forever.
