BCCI Told To ‘Put Its Foot Down’, Make India Stars Play First-Class Cricket

Kapil Dev asks the BCCI to mandate domestic cricket for top players, citing India’s struggles against spin.

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Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli played in the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy.

Photo: Deepak Malik / CREIMAS for BCCI

Former India captain Kapil Dev has called on the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to take a stronger stance on established men’s players’ participation in domestic cricket, arguing that the team’s recent struggles against spin are partly a consequence of the lack of focus on multi-day matches.

India endured home Test whitewashes against New Zealand and South Africa in the last couple of years, with batters repeatedly exposed against quality spin. How the team would cope against slow bowlers on spin-friendly tracks in Sri Lanka in the upcoming two-Test series is a major talking point already.

“Playing domestic cricket is very important. The reason why Indian teams struggle against spin is that the top players don’t play enough domestic cricket. That’s where the BCCI should put its foot down and make everyone play multi-day matches. The other aspect is that the younger generation will get to learn from the top players,” Kapil said at the launch of Bengaluru Blasters ahead of the JITO Premier League.

The 1983 World Cup-winning captain also attributed India’s problems against spin to the team’s heavy workload in white-ball cricket.

“In recent times, India has not been the best against spin bowling. They play too many T20s and ODIs. Test matches are a different ball game. I hope they can put their heads together,” he added.

This would be easier said than done. Although the duo of head coach Gautam Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar have made a big push for this — Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma both played a match each in the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy season — the cricket schedule is too packed to allow it.

The Ranji Trophy happens during the Indian winter, which is also the season for bilateral tours and home rubbers.

Kapil also urged the BCCI to pay closer attention to fast bowlers’ workload amid the packed T20 calendar, warning that excessive cricket could increase injury risks.

“One should know about one’s own body. There is too much T20 cricket happening, so you have to be careful about the toll it takes on the body. Our body is actually not tuned to being a fast bowler. Our body is more tuned to being a batter. The BCCI should look into how much workload can be given to fast bowlers,” he said.

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Original source: https://www.news18.com/cricket/