BCCI secretary Jay Shah has confirmed that the Ranji Trophy would be held in two phases. The first, in February-March, will be for league matches, while the knockout games will be held in June.

The tournament was earlier scheduled to start on January 13 but had to be postponed indefinitely because of rising Covid-19 cases in the country.

“The board has decided to conduct the Ranji Trophy this season in two phases. In the first phase, we plan to complete all matches of the league stage while the knockouts will be held in June,” Shah said on Friday.

“My team is working closely to mitigate any kind of health risk caused by the pandemic, while at the same time ensuring a highly competitive red-ball cricket contest. The Ranji Trophy is our most prestigious domestic competition, which has been providing Indian cricket with an enviable talent pool every year. It is absolutely important that we take all necessary steps to safeguard the interest of this premier event.”

Former Team India head coach Ravi Shastri also voiced his support for the tournament. “The Ranji Trophy is the backbone of Indian cricket. The moment you start ignoring it our cricket will be SPINELESS!,” Shastri tweeted.

In a letter to state associations, Shah further said that “the decks have been cleared” and the BCCI was all set to conduct the prestigious tournament. He said that the recovery rate from the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic was encouraging, but the BCCI would continue to have biosecure bubbles for the tournament to “mitigate any risks”.