“Will carry severe implications,” Jay Shah gives last WARNING to players who are skipping Ranji Trophy to prepare for IPL

Jay Shah is not happy with many BCCI contracted players skipping the ongoing Ranji Trophy.

“Will carry severe implications,” Jay Shah gives last WARNING to players who are skipping Ranji Trophy to prepare for IPL

Jay Shah has targeted players like Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer for skipping the Ranji Trophy (Iamges via ESPN)

Recently, the BCCI was not happy with many players skipping the domestic competitions, preferring to prepare themselves for the Indian Premier League. Jay Shah and the BCCI decided to make participation in the the domestic circuit mandatory for all BCCI contracted players. 

Despite this new rule, Indian players Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer and Deepak Chahar decided to skip the recent round of Ranji Trophy. Kishan has not played a single match since November, opting to sit out of the South African tour as he was on break. Iyer had recently been dropped after poor performances for the Indian Test side and Chahar refused to play the Ranji Trophy. 

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Disappointed by this, Shah sent letters to all BCCI contracted players, reminding them of “severe implications” if they don’t participate in any domestic tournaments. He stated all domestic tournaments of being yardsticks for selection into the Indian side as well. 

It is essential to recognise that domestic cricket forms the backbone of Indian cricket and serves as the feeder line to Team India. Our vision for Indian cricket has been clear from the outset - every cricketer aspiring to play for India must prove themselves in domestic cricket. Performance in domestic tournaments remains a critical yardstick for selection, and non-participation in domestic cricket will carry severe implications.
Jay Shah’s letter to all contracted players

Iyer has a Grade B BCCI contract that gets him ₹3 crores per year, while Kishan has a Grade C contract with a pay of ₹1 crore. Chahar was contracted earlier, with a Grade C contract, but was dropped after missing games due to injuries. 

Hardik Pandya to be exempted from Ranji Trophy 

While many BCCI contracted players have been asked to play in domestic competitions, Hardik Pandya has been exempted from playing the longer format. It has been understood that due to his injury record, the Indian team management has made sure he doesn’t play Tests and First Class so he can be fit for white-ball matches. 

Hardik Pandya
Hardik Pandya last played Test cricket in 2018 (Image via ESPN)

Pandya last played a first class match during India’s tour of England, in the Southampton Test. He was a part of the Indian squad during their tour of Australia in 2018/19, but did not feature in a single Test. Pandya recently spoke about how he’ll only return to the Test side if he’s earned his spot.  

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