‘BCCI Will Have Two National Teams Ready At the Same Time’-Jay Shah
In 2021, something interesting happened. For the very first time, India simultaneously played two series in two different locations. While Virat Kohli led India took on England, a separate team under Shikhar Dhawan was playing in Sri Lanka. This was first such instance in the history of Indian cricket that two separate teams were representing the nation. If BCCI secretary Jay Shah is to be believed, then such a scenario might arise again. In-fact, he said that BCCI ‘will have two teams ready at the same time.’
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“I have had discussions with NCA head VVS Laxman and we will always have 50 players in our roster. In future, you will have a scenario, where the Indian Test team will be playing a series in one country and the white-ball team will be engaged in a series in a different country. We are going in that direction where we will have two national teams ready at the same time,” he told PTI.
Since the inception of IPL, a demand for a separate window for the multi-million dollar tournament rose through the years. But ICC never buckled under BCCI pressure. Nonetheless, the BCCI secretary revealed that such a revolutionary move could soon be the reality. This will allow top international stars to play the league without being bothered about national duty.
“That is an aspect we have worked upon. Let me inform you that from the next ICC FTP calendar, IPL will have an official two-and-a-half month window so that all the top international cricketers can participate. We have had discussions with various boards as well as the ICC,” he said.
Furthermore, he said that BCCI is trying its best to strengthen the weaker nations by playing against them, citing the upcoming two T20Is against Ireland.
“Indian cricket will remain strong as long as world cricket remains strong. Let me assure you of this. The BCCI is committed to international cricket. And it’s not just about India versus Australia or India versus England marquee series, we are committed to playing even the smaller nations. All bilateral international commitments across all formats will be honoured. We are playing Ireland in two T20 Internationals this month only. We want a strong robust international circuit and want to help the smaller cricketing nations by playing against them.”
