Mumbai cricket ready for a new league

Mumbai cricket, as Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi once observed, is only obsessed with the Ranji Trophy; how else do you explain the fact that despite being the champions 40 times over, they hardly contribute enough players to the Indian team.
The MCA indoor cricket academy, which was launched a few years ago, was expected to change that by fast tracking talented youngsters into the main stream.But the general verdict is that it hasn't yielded the desired results.
The MCA has concluded that its tournament structure is the main cause for this. With most of its tournaments being played on a knockout basis, the feeling was that the players are not getting enough matches to sharpen their skills.
Moreover, its famed Kanga League has been a victim of heavy rains and awful ground conditions for the last five years. It is anyway an anachronism now, with covered pitches becoming the norm the world over.
For the new season, starting September 7, the major tournaments will be played on a league basis, increasing the number of matches dramatically. Till the last season, 2275 matches were played on 70 grounds; the new format will see 3100 matches being played on 97 grounds.
The question is will the 825 extra matches really help Mumbai cricket? Sudhir Naik, chairman of the Mumbai selection committee who is also involved with the National Cricket Club for three decades, says, "In the earlier format, if the main players weren't available for a match, the team would lose and the other players had no more opportunities. In the league format, one or two defeats will not mean the end for a youngster."
Acknowledging that there could be some teething problems, MCA senior secretary Nitin Dalal believes this is the way forward: "There will be 13 matches for each club. A, B and C divisions will be played over one and a half days while the matches of the other three divisions will last a day each."
Mumbai's new plan seems promising, except for a crucial flaw. Many teenagers were tempted or forced to play in the Kanga League knockouts. The system now demands that if they play in this tournament, they can only play in the E, F or G Division which is absurd.
Mumbai will lose out on a number of good teenagers if they aren't allowed to play in higher divisions. The task of this project is to provide immense showcasing time to as many under-19s as possible.
Why stall their progress and aspirations? If implemented well, this tournament structure can re-ignite Mumbai cricket. All efforts should be directed towards that goal.