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The 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League begins tomorrow. But due to IPL, players are choosing it over domestic cricket.
Last month, the BCCI finally addressed this problem that was looming on the horizon as far back as in 2008 when the cash-rich IPL came into being. It warned players against picking “IPL over domestic cricket” and, to set an example, excluded two young stars Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan from its list of central contracts for missing Ranji Trophy matches this season.
Team lists analysed and as reported by The Indian Express show that of the 165 Indian cricketers who signed up for IPL 2024 starting Friday, 56 did not appear for a single game in the Ranji season that ended this week despite being on their state units’ radar while 25 more appeared in only one.
Officials point out that cricketers give four-day Ranji games a miss mainly to remain injury-free for the four-hour IPL. But then, they say, the big question is: are players solely to blame?
“The BCCI allowed them to get away with it. With no clear policy or fitness protocol, the state units were helpless in forcing IPL stars to play first-class cricket,” said a senior state unit official.
Nothing illustrates the crisis better than these examples culled from Ranji Trophy data, and interviews with state unit officials and IPL franchise owners- injuries are often the official reason given by cricketers to miss Ranji games.
After Umran Malik hit the headlines with his 150kph deliveries, two other fast bowlers from J&K, Rasikh Salam Dar and Yudhvir Singh Charak, were picked for the IPL. Both missed the entire Ranji season.
India coach Rahul Dravid had said that Jharkhand’s Ishan Kishan should play in the Ranji to get back in reckoning for India. But Jharkhand State Cricket Association president Sanjay Sahay said, “He never made himself available for Ranji.
It’s hardly a surprise then that the only domestic tournaments that see a rush of IPL players and hopefuls are the shorter-format Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 and the 50-over Vijay Hazare Trophy. With franchises sending talent scouts, these white-ball tournaments have become gateways to IPL contracts.