KL Rahul, Mohammed Siraj In Duleep Trophy? BCCI Sends Stern Message. Reason Is...
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has written to state associations to select centrally-contracted players for Duleep Trophy.
- BCCI instructed state associations to select available centrally-contracted players for Duleep Trophy
- South Zone omitted key players like Mohammed Siraj, KL Rahul, Washington Sundar and Sai Sudharsan
- BCCI’s Abey Kuruvilla emphasised on electing top India players to maintain Duleep Trophy’s prestige
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has written to state associations to select centrally-contracted players for Duleep Trophy. The decision was taken after top players like Mohammed Siraj and KL Rahul were not picked by South Zone for the upcoming Duleep Trophy. According to The Indian Express, BCCI has sent an email to some cricket associations regarding the non-selection of centrally contracted cricketers. South Zone did not include the likes of Washington Sundar, Prasidh Krishna and Sai Sudharsan either. BCCI's general manager (cricket operations) Abey Kuruvilla reportedly asked the state associations to give Duleep Trophy the desired respect by picking strong squads.
“To uphold its prestige and ensure the highest quality of competition, it's imperative that all currently available India players are selected for their respective zonal teams. Requesting the Zonal Convenors to ensure that all the current India players who are available to play Duleep trophy should be picked,” Kuruvilla wrote in an email accessed by The Indian Express.
However, according to the report, some state associations feel that India cricketers should play for India A or the Board President's XI instead of Duleep or Deodhar Trophy. The general perception is that when international cricketers take part, they end up replacing players who have been doing well domestically.
In 2024, BCCI made it clear that centrally-contracted cricketers will have to take part in domestic competitions unless they are on international duty. Top players like Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Kuldeep Yadav, Akash Deep, Mohammed Shami and Shreyas Iyer were already named in squads.
“Participation in domestic matches: All players, contracted or otherwise, who make themselves available for selection into Team India, shall participate in domestic matches conducted by BCCI. In case any player opts not to participate in any domestic cricket tournaments in spite of availability, he/she shall not be considered for selection unless a prior recommendation is obtained to skip the match/tournament from the National coach and the chairman of selection committee, and prior approval from the BCCI. In case any leave is granted, the same shall be considered on the basis of some valid and cogent reason.”
KL Rahul