It is generally believed that the stronger your Domestic cricket the better your national cricket team will be. As you can guess domestic cricket provides the player resources for the national side. The men’s Indian cricket team is amongst the top sides in the world and one of the reasons is the flawless structure of domestic cricket in India.
What are the different tournaments in domestic cricket in India?
| Tournaments | Format |
| Ranji Trophy | First-class (Four days) |
| Irani Trophy | First-class (Five days) |
| Duleep Trophy | First-class (league stages: Four days; Final: Five days) |
| Vijay Hazare Trophy | 50-over format |
| Deodhar Trophy | 50-over format |
| Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy | 20-over format |
| Indian Premier League | 20-over format |
Domestic cricket in India is vastly spread across age groups and genders. Senior men’s cricket in particular has several domestic tournaments for players to showcase their talent. These senior men’s tournaments include Vijay Hazare Trophy, Ranji trophy, Deodhar trophy, Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and more. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have the authority over all cricket in India.
There are three tournaments in first class cricket namely Ranji trophy, Duleep trophy and Irani trophy.
Ranji trophy is the most prestigious competition in Indian domestic cricket, started way back in 1935 and is an annual event. It’s a red ball championship fought by multiple teams and regions in India. It was named after Ranjitsinhji Vibhaji II, the first Indian to play international cricket.
The tournament currently comprises 38 teams, including all 28 states in India, four of the eight union territories and two teams representing armed forces (Railways and Services). Two states – Maharashtra and Gujarat have three representative teams each in the tournament. Domestic cricket giant Mumbai is the most successful team in the competition, having won the ranji trophy 41 times.
Talking about the format, it has been changed several times over the decades. In 2021-22 domestic, Ranji trophy had teams split into eight Elite groups of four teams each and the Plate group comprising the rest. After round robin matches in each group, winners of the top seven Elite groups qualified for the quarterfinals directly while the Elite group H winners had to compete with the Plate group winners in pre-quarterfinals. For the 2022-23 season, the format returns to four Elite groups of eight teams each and a Plate group.
The Duleep trophy was first held in 1961-62. It was started as an interzonal competition but it has went through some tweaks over the years. From 2016 to 2020, four seasons were held between three teams – India Blue, India Red and India Green – chosen by selectors. In 2021-2022, the tournament returned to its original format with five teams – North zone, South zone, West zone, East zone and Central zone competing for the title along with an added Northeast zone. West zone are the most successful team in Duleep trophy, having won the title 19 times.
Then we have Irani trophy, which was first organised in 1959-60 to commemorate 25 years of Ranji trophy. It’s a one-off red-ball fixture, in which the winners of the Ranji trophy of the particular season compete against a Rest of India team. The Rest of India team comprises of the players from the rest of the first class teams.
Coming to List A cricket, there are two senior men’s One-Day competitions – Vijay Hazare Trophy and Deodhar trophy.
Vijay Hazare Trophy is a fifty-over iteration of Ranji trophy, comprising state and regional teams. First hosted in 2002-03, with 38 teams placed in certain groups competing in round robin format followed by the playoffs. Tamil Nadu are the most successful team in the competition with give titles to their credit.
Deodhar trophy is another 50-over competition, which is contested between three teams – India A, India B and India C. The tournament was first held in 1973-74 as an interzonal competition.
Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy is the national level T20 competition, played between the ranji trophy teams. It has been one of the most popular tournaments in domestic cricket and acts as a feeder to the Indian Premier League. Tamil Nadu are the most successful team in the competition, winning it thrice including the inaugural 2006-07 edition. There are several T20 competitions at state level such as Tamil Nadu Premier League, Karnataka Premier League, T20 Mumbai League and others, hosted by their respective State boards.
Indian Premier League, the biggest T20 league in the world, also comes under India’s domestic cricket, although it’s a franchise based tournament. Mumbai Indians are the most successful side in the IPL with five titles while Chennai Super Kings have won four.
What are the age-group domestic cricket tournament in India?
There are various age-group tournaments put in place by the BCCI for young players to thrive in. The Cooch Behar trophy is a four-day competition for under 19 players in India. It was formed in 1945-46 and has been an annual event. All the U-19 sides of Ranji teams compete in this tournament except Railways and Services.
The Vinoo Mankad trophy, named after the former India cricketer, is a List A i.e One-Day competition for Under 19 age group. The youth teams of the first-class states and associations compete in the tournament.
The Vijay Merchant trophy is organised annually by the BCCI and is a multi-day competition for Under 16 cricketers in India. The Under 16 teams of all states and associations take part in this competition. The tournament has previously come under the scanner for players fudging their age.
Men’s U25 State A trophy is a One-Day competition and as you can guess, it’s for the Under 25 players in the country. 37 BCCI affiliated states and associations field their U25 sides in this tournament except Services.
The Col. CK Nayudu trophy is a four-day competition, held for the Under 25 age-group in the country. Similar to the U25 State A trophy, this tournament also consists 37 states and regional teams.
What domestic cricket tournaments are held for women in India?
The women’s game in India is evolving rapidly and the BCCI is all set to launch a full fledged women’s IPL from next year. There are several other tournaments for women in domestic cricket, all of which are limited overs.
Senior Women’s One Day trophy is basically the women’s version of Vijay Hazare Trophy. It’s a One day competition for senior women, played between the state and regional teams.
Senior Women’s Inter Zonal One Day competition is played between six zones in List A format.
Then there is Senior Women’s T20 Trophy, played between the women of the states and regional teams.
Senior Women’s T20 Challenger trophy is played between the women grouped in four teams – India A, India B, India C and India D. There’s also a Senior Women’s Inter Zonal T20 competition.
There are age-group competitions for women in India too, namely – Women’s Under 19 one day trophy, Women’s Under 19 T20 trophy, women’s under 19 T20 Challenger trophy, Quadrangular women’s under 19 T20 series.
What is the payment structure for domestic cricket in India?
The BCCI had recently announced equal pay for India’s men and women in international cricket. But the payment structure in domestic cricket varies a lot.
According to the current model, Ranji cricketers, who have played more than 40 matches, earn ₹60,000 per day while those who have played 21 to 40 matches receive ₹50,000 a day.
Senior women’s cricketers earn ₹20,000 per match, raised from ₹12,500 earlier.
Men’s under-23 players fetch ₹25,000 per day while Under-19s in the playing XIs get ₹20,000 per day. The under-16 players receive ₹7000 per day. All women’s cricketers in age-group receive similar pay – set at ₹10000 per day.
FAQs
What is the Indian domestic trophy 2022 schedule?
India’s 2022-23 domestic season got underway on September 8th with the Duleep trophy, followed by Irani Cup fixture on October 1st. Women’s Under 19 T20 trophy culminated on October 17th, with Madhya Pradesh claiming the title.
Vidarbha clinched the Vinoo Mankad trophy on October 23 whereas Mumbai won their first ever Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy on November 5th. On the same day, Railways won the Senior Women’s T20 Trophy. Cooch Behar trophy is currently underway and will end on December 31st.
As for the Ranji trophy, it begins on December 13 and concludes on February 16th.
What are the list of domestic cricket tournaments in India?
There’s a long list of tournaments in domestic cricket in India for men’s, women’s and age-group cricketers. It includes Ranji, Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy, Duleep trophy, Irani trophy, Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy, Challenger trophy, Senior Women’s ODI trophy, Senior Women’s interzonal ODI, Senior Women’s T20 Trophy, etc.
