It had once been believed that Test cricket would be the principal victim of the Indian Premier League’s predations. It now turns out that the IPL — this year’s edition of the tournament begins today — has been devouring not the longest format of the game but the Ranji Trophy, supposedly India’s principal domestic tournament. An analysis by a newspaper has revealed that of the 165 Indian cricketers who would feature in this year’s IPL, almost 56 have chosen to bunk the entire Ranji season while 25 cricketers played only a single match in that competition. Among cricketers playing truant are some prominent names: Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya and his brother and so on. The reason, undoubtedly, has to do with their pecuniary interests. The IPL fetches them the riches; the lowest base price for a player in the last IPL players’ auction was a sum of Rs 20 lakh, an amount that is much higher than what the players earn from matches in first-class cricket. Given the fact that a busy cricket calendar heightens the chances of players’ injuries, Indian cricketers prefer to skip domestic tournaments with a longer format — the Ranji Trophy is one — so that they are fit enough to play in the lucre league.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India is now cracking the whip. It has warned players not to prioritise the IPL over domestic cricket and even excluded Mr Iyer and Mr Kishan from its central contract system to set an example. Of course, the big boys — Mr Pandya, for instance — managed to elude the whip. Punitive interventions may not be enough to root out the mischief. What is required instead is the introduction of meaningful changes in the financial structure of domestic cricket. A hike in remuneration for domestic cricket as well as a central contract that would make it obligatory for players to appear for state teams, as has been suggested by Sunil Gavaskar, is the need of the hour. State associations should also be given the power to ensure that cricketers do not get to play in the IPL if they violate the terms of the contract. An intelligent reworking of the cricketing calendar would be a prudent step as well. Talented cricketers ignoring the Ranji Trophy not only robs the fixture of its sheen but also weakens the foundation — domestic cricket — on which stands the future of Indian cricket.