Junior cricket gets facelift

MUMBAI, December 31: The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is set to make sweeping changes in the junior cricket set-up. This is part of a drive undertaken by the board to review the quantity and quality of tournaments played up to the U22 age group category.
"The total number of matches played in junior tournaments is huge and now with the addition of the women's cricket, there is extra pressure on the grounds and wickets, which has resulted in sub-standard playing conditions," BCCI's joint secretary, MP Pandove, has written in report submitted to the Board.
At the Board's junior cricket committee's meeting held in Mumbai last week, it was decided that the U15 and U17 cricket should be merged into an U16 tournament, which should be played as a zonal league with two top teams qualifying for national knock-out.
The committee also decided that the U22 inter-state tournament should be converted into 'A' team tournament with the restriction that a team should not play more than three Ranji players in a match.
In the report, a copy of which is with the TOI, a proposal to have the first-ever national schools tournament was discussed.
It has been left to the states to organise their own schools tournament.
Only cricket at U19 level will be untouched but with one exception. In the Cooch Behar Trophy, the practice of allotting the matches in one zone or at one place would be done away with and it should be played on home and away basis like in Ranji Trophy.
The U19 One-day tournament, till now being played at one centre in a zone, will be done away with. Instead, it will be played at two to three centres within a zone so that players may get good playing conditions.
The 'A' team tournament is likely to be played on Plate and Elite format from the year 2009-10. However, for next season (2008-09) it is to be played according to the U-22 format. Top three teams in the zone will qualify for the Elite Group for 2009-2010 and the remaining teams will be in Plate.
According to the report, the School Games Federation of India (SGFI) had requested the Board president Sharad Pawar