For many years, the zing was indeed very much in evidence
Partab Ramchand30-Aug-2002The once-prestigious Duleep Trophy has met with the ultimatehumiliation. With the Board of Control for Cricket in India(BCCI) changing its format from an inter-zonal competition to onewhere the contestants will be three teams drawn from playersinvolved in the elite division of the reshaped Ranji Trophy andtwo teams from the Plate Division of the Ranji Trophy, the DuleepTrophy has been shorn of all its glamour and importance.
For many years, the zing was indeed very much inevidence. Matches were of a high standard, competition was keen,and the feats of the leading lights in the game in the countrywere followed with fervour. Notable Duleep Trophy deeds were apassport, as it were, to a place in the Indian team.
Over the years, the competition has slowly lost its place as thepre-eminent national tournament, thanks first to the players whoregularly gave it a miss and then to the administrators whoscheduled the competition in a haphazard manner, changing theformat from a knock-out to league and back again. Last season,for example, the tournament was played at the fag end of theseason, when interest among players and cricket-followers wasbound to be lukewarm.But at least the format was retained, and for budding players,there was no more prestigious tournament. A place in the zonalDuleep side was much sought after by youngsters who did well inthe Ranji Trophy. They were aware that it represented the finalstepping-stone towards an India cap. Indeed, over the last 40years, one has lost count of the number of stars who stepped onto the international stage with a notable performance in theDuleep Trophy.Getting into the zonal side was a matter of pride, but with thechange of format, one doubts that the same honour will beassociated with the tournament any more. A cricketer used to saywith pride that he represented South Zone or West Zone or NorthZone. What will he say now? With zonal identification missing,the importance of the tournament is no longer relevant.The Duleep tournament was inaugurated in 1961-62 and came as awhiff of fresh air in the sick domestic circuit. The RanjiChampionship, after more than 25 years, had lost much of itssheen and glamour, and the dwindling crowds said it all. It washoped that the Duleep Trophy, a more glamorous tournamentinvolving the best players from the five zones, would do much tobring back interest in domestic cricket.And for many years, the zing was indeed very much in evidence.Matches were of a high standard, competition was keen, and thefeats of the leading lights in the game in the country werefollowed with fervour. Notable Duleep Trophy deeds were apassport, as it were, to a place in the Indian team.The first two decades of the Duleep was the tournament’s goldenperiod. >From the early 80s, the devaluation commenced. With theinternational calendar getting heavier, stars started giving thecompetition a miss. Often the Duleep Trophy had the tag of beinga “glorified trial,” held just prior to selecting an Indian teamfor a tour.Through the 80s and 90s, the Duleep Trophy gradually became justanother domestic tournament to be conducted without anyparticular planning by the BCCI. By this time the internationalcommitments had become even heavier, so the competing teamsgenerally consisted of the second string of players. Notunexpectedly, the crowds stayed away. A brief flirtation for afew years of holding the competition on a league basis did notchange matters much. Indeed, many players complained that it onlymade the Duleep Trophy needlessly long-winded in an already heavydomestic season.But throughout these four decades, the tournament was held eitherat the start of the season or halfway through, so the playerswere still fresh and had something to play for. With the BCCIshifting last year’s competition to March – April, the tournamentsuffered a grievous insult.Now comes the crowning humiliation. There was really no need forthe BCCI to take such a drastic change in the composition of theteams. Even if, over the years, the tournament has lost much ofits initial glamour, it must not be forgotten that it is stillimportant for budding players eager to climb the ladder ofsuccess. It will not give them the same degree of thrill, successand fulfillment even if they do well in its new .This is needless tinkering with an important competition, andwhile the domestic circuit has to be restructured, this is notthe way to go about it. The BCCI, in the process, has also shownscant respect to the great cricketer after whom the trophy hasbeen named.