Domestic Cricket Tournaments In India: The disparity between Indian cricket’s resources ten years ago and today—including players, infrastructure, funding, and influence in international cricket—is startling. India recently sent out two squads, one for a T20I and ODI series against Sri Lanka and the other for a five-match test series in England. The forthcoming T20I World Cup 2021 and 2023 Cricket World Cup are scheduled to take place in India, if that’s not enough to show you how big Indian cricket is (the T20I World Cup has already relocated its venues to the UAE and Oman owing to the pandemic).
Furthermore, the richest cricket federation in the world is the Board of Control of Cricket in India. This evolution can only be attributed to the Indian Premier League, but other local competitions have also made significant contributions, particularly in terms of strengthening the Indian roster.
The Ranji Trophy, the Duleep Trophy, the Vijay Hazare Trophy, the Deodhar Trophy, the Irani Trophy, and the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy are among the domestic events in India that are held yearly by the BCCI. The largest sporting league in the world and the largest cricket league is the Indian Premier League, a Twenty20 competition featuring different city-based teams playing in a manner akin to American football. The Women’s Premier League (WPL), a league for women, was introduced in 2023. Let’s examine every domestic cricket competition held in India.
A complete list of the most popular Domestic Cricket Tournaments In India
Cricket tournaments in India: BCCI Ranji Trophy Cricket
Since 1934, India’s top domestic cricket competition has been the Ranji Trophy. A.S. De Mello, the founding member of the Board of Control of Cricket in India, made the suggestion. The competition was formerly known as the Cricket Championship of India, but it was later renamed in honor of Ranjitsinhji, the country’s first international cricket player. There are knockout phases after the round-robin phase of the competition. There are two divisions for the 38 teams that compete in the Ranji Trophy cricket competition: the elite league and the plate league. Every season, there are promotions and relegations. With 41 titles overall, Bombay is the most successful Ranji Trophy team, and Saurashtra is the current champion.
Cricket tournaments in India: Duleep Trophy
The Duleep Trophy, which bears the name of the former cricket player Duleepsinhji, was originally awarded in 1961–1962 following Bombay’s 15-title winning run in the Ranji Trophy group stages. The BCCI split the states into geographic zones, such as the East, West, South, North, and Central zones, to produce a more competitive first-class tournament. Originally a knockout system, it changed to a league format following the 1993–1994 season. The competition is now played against just three teams: India Red, India Blue, and India Green, rather than on a zonal basis. The Duleep Trophy is currently being won by India Red. The North and West zones still hold the most Duleep Trophy titles (18 apiece), despite the zonal-based teams only ceasing to exist during the 2016–2017 season.
Cricket tournaments in India: Irani Cup
The Irani Cup was first played during the 1959–60 season in honor of the Ranji Trophy’s silver jubilee. The current Ranji Trophy Champion and the rest of India compete in a single first-class match for this trophy. Z.R. Irani was a legend in Indian cricket history and an essential founding member of the BCCI. Thus, by naming the cup after the late legend, the board honored him. As expected, the most successful team in Irani Cup history is the Rest of India; however, Vidarbha, who won the competition twice, are the current winners.
Cricket tournaments in India: Deodhar Trophy
Possibly best described as the Duleep Trophy on List A,. The Deodhar Trophy bears the name of D.B. Deodhar, the Grand Old Man of Indian cricket. The competition uses a round-robin knockout format, with India A, India B, and India C competing. Similar to the Duleep Trophy, the teams were first split up according to geographic zones, and then, as of the 2018–19 season, those divisions were reduced to these three teams. In terms of championships gained during the Deodhar Trophy, the North Zone is the most successful team.
BCCI Vijay Hazare Trophy
The largest 50-over domestic competition in India involves all 38 Ranji Trophy teams. Vijay Hazare, one of the best cricket players India has ever produced, was named after him by the BCCI in the 2002–03 season as a mark of respect. The playoffs will determine the winner following the round-robin group stages. The Vijay Hazare Trophy circuit is far more competitive than the Ranji Trophy circuit. Even though Tamil Nadu has won the most titles (five), teams from Mumbai, Karnataka, Gujarat, Saurashtra, and other states have just as much chance to win, making this one of the most thrilling local competitions.
Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy
Soon after the first IPL season, the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy began play, creating a lot of excitement and curiosity among Indian fans who were only beginning to explore the T20 era. In terms of the number of participating teams, the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy is the largest domestic Twenty20 contest in India. 38 teams were competing in both the Ranji Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy in this event. The unpredictable nature of the T20 format is one of its main characteristics. The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy guarantees just that, since no side has won the trophy more than twice in the 13 seasons to date. For states in India with little history in cricket, like these, it’s an incredible platform.
Indian Premier League
When it first started, the Indian Premier League (IPL) was meant to be the T20 league equivalent of the Big Bash and T20 Blast. With eight teams at the moment, the IPL features some of the greatest international players and gives gifted Indian youths a platform to pursue their passion for cricket. The top four teams from each of the eight clubs’ double round-robin league stages advance to the playoffs. Teams will be able to strengthen their weak points and bolster their rosters through an auction held before each season. Consequently, T20 cricket in the IPL is perhaps of the highest caliber ever. The most successful IPL team, the Mumbai Indians, are the reigning champions and will win their fifth title in the IPL in 2020.
