Photo via Hindustan Times

Don’t compromise Ranji Trophy: Sunil Gavaskar calls out India A scheduling clash, warns against weakening domestic competition

Legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has criticized the scheduling of India A matches alongside the Ranji Trophy, warning that overlapping fixtures weaken the domestic competition. The latest clash saw Rajat Patidar, Devdutt Padikkal, and Ruturaj Gaikwad miss their state team games—Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra, respectively—due to the third and final one-day match between India A and Australia A coinciding with the Ranji Trophy’s opening day.

Gavaskar, a 1983 World Cup winner, argued that the inclusion of Plate Group teams has diluted the competition’s standard, making it harder to gauge individual player quality when top international stars rarely participate in domestic matches. He also highlighted that some players accumulate records in the Ranji Trophy but struggle to replicate their performances for India, suggesting that the current scheduling conflicts exacerbate this issue.

Gavaskar emphasized the need to prioritize the Ranji Trophy’s integrity, noting that weakened competition allows inflated statistics without true merit.

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