Ranji Trophy 1st phase to be played from February 10 to March 15, knockouts to start post-IPL on May 30

The first phase of Ranji Trophy will take place from February 10-March 15 and “post IPL” phase from May 30-June 26, BCCI secretary Jay Shah informed state units on Thursday.

Shah’s letter made it clear that it is set to be one of the shortest first-class seasons with most teams getting to play only three matches which effectively means that increased match fees will not have an impact on most of the teams that will be ousted at the group league stage.

The tournament will have 64 games in 62 days with the first phase comprising 57 matches and the second stage having seven knock-out games which comprises four quarter-finals, two semi-finals and the final.

The elite group matches will be played in Rajkot, Cuttack, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Trivandrum, Delhi, Haryana and Guwahati. Plate league matches will be held in Kolkata. Each team from elite group, barring one, will qualify for the quarterfinals. The lowest ranked qualified team from elite group will play plate toppers in the sole pre-quarterfinal.

The BCCI, after its apex council meeting in January, announced the postponement of the Ranji Trophy after rescheduling the start of the tournament multiple times in the wake of rising Covid-19 cases in the country.

However, the pressure was mounting on the board with players expressing their concern at the possibility of the Ranji Trophy’s cancellation for the 2nd successive season. The premier domestic tournament was not held in the 2020-21 season but the players were compensated for the canceled domestic matches earlier this year.

No red ball domestic cricket has taken place in India since the Ranji Trophy final in March 2020.