*Official* Indian Domestic Season 2004/2005

[NikhilN]

The domestic season about to start very soon so lets discuss it


here are the fixtures for the Ranji Trophy

Elite Group:
Group "A" Group "B"
Mumbai Tamil Nadu
Bengal Maharashtra
Andhra Punjab
Railways Baroda
Karnataka Uttar Pradesh
Madhya Pradesh Hyderabad
Gujarat Assam
Delhi

Dates Between Venue

First Round:

07-10 Nov Railways v Mumbai Delhi
07-10 Nov Bengal v Karnataka Kolkatta
07-10 Nov Gujarat v Delhi Gujarat
07-10 Nov Andhra v Madhya Pradesh Andhra
07-10 Nov Punjab v Uttar Pradesh Punjab
07-10 Nov Hyderabad v Tamil Nadul Hyderabad
07-10 Nov Assam v Baroda Guwahati

Second Round:

16-19 Nov Mumbai v Madhya Pradesh Mumbai
16-19 Nov Railways v Bengal Delhi
16-19 Nov Karnataka v Gujarat Bangalore
16-19 Nov Delhi v Andhra Delhi
16-19 Nov Punjab v Assam Punjab
16-19 Nov Uttar Pradesh v Tamil Nadu Kanpur
16-19 Nov Maharashtra v Baroda Pune

Third Round:

25-28 Nov Mumbai v Andhra Mumbai
25-28 Nov Delhi v Railways Delhi
25-28 Nov Bengal v Gujarat Kolkatta
25-28 Nov Karnataka v Madhya Pradesh Bangalore
25-28 Nov Punjab v Baroda Punjab
25-28 Nov Uttar Pradesh v Assam Kanpur
25-28 Nov Hyderabad v Maharashtra Hyderabad

Fourth Round:

04-07 Dec Bengal v Mumbai Kolkatta
04-07 Dec Gujarat v Railways Gujarat
04-07 Dec Karnataka v Andhra Bangalore
04-07 Dec Delhi v Madhya Pradesh Delhi
04-07 Dec Punjab v Maharashtra Punjab
04-07 Dec Hyderabad v Baroda Hyderabad
04-07 Dec Assam v Tamil Nadu Guwahati

Fifth Round:

13-16 Dec Mumbai v Gujarat Mumbai
13-16 Dec Madhya Pradesh v Railways Indore
13-16 Dec Andhra v Bengal Andhra
13-16 Dec Delhi v Karnataka Delhi
13-16 Dec Tamil Nadu v Punjab Chennai
13-16 Dec Hyderabad v Uttar Pradesh Hyderabad
13-16 Dec Maharashtra v Assam Pune

Sixth Round:

22-25 Dec Mumbai v Karnataka Mumbai
22-25 Dec Andhra v Railways Andhra
22-25 Dec Bengal v Delhi Kolkatta
22-25 Dec Gujarat v Madhya Pradesh Gujarat
22-25 Dec Hyderabad v Punjab Hyderabad
22-25 Dec Maharashtra v Uttar Pradesh Pune
22-25 Dec Baroda v Tamil Nadu Baroda

Seventh Round:

31 Dec-03 Jan Mumbai v Delhi Mumbai
31 Dec-03 Jan Karnataka v Railways Bangalore
31 Dec-03 Jan Bengal v Madhya Pradesh Kolkatta
31 Dec-03 Jan Andhra v Gujarat Andhra
31 Dec-03 Jan Tamil Nadu v Mahasrashtra Chennai
31 Dec-03 Jan Hyderabad v Assam Hyderabad
31 Dec-03 Jan Baroda v Uttar Pradesh Baroda

Plate Group:
Group "A" Group "B"
Orissa Haryana
Himachal Pradesh Tripura
Kerala Vidarbha
Saurashtra Services
Jammu & Kashmir Goa
Bihar Rajasthan

Dates Between Venue

First Round:

16-19 Nov Jammu & Kashmir v Orissa Jammu
16-19 Nov Kerala v Himchal Pradesh Kerala
16-19 Nov Saurashtra v Bihar Rajkot
16-19 Nov Tripura v Haryana Tripura
16-19 Nov Services v Goa Delhi
16-19 Nov Vidarbha v Rajasthan Nagpur

Second Round:

25-28 Nov Kerala v Orissa Kerala
25-28 Nov Bihar v Jammu & Kashmir Bihar
25-28 Nov Himachal Pradesh v Saurashtra Himachal Pradesh
25-28 Nov Haryana v Goa Haryana
25-28 Nov Vidarbha v Tripura Nagpur
25-28 Nov Services v Rajasthan Delhi

Third Round:

04-07 Dec Himachal Pradesh v Orissa Himachal Pradesh
04-07 Dec Bihar v Kerala Bihar
04-07 Dec Jammu & Kashmir v Saurashtra Jammu
04-07 Dec Services v Haryana Delhi
04-07 Dec Goa v Vidarbha Goa
04-07 Dec Rajasthan v Tripura Rajasthan

Fourth Round:

13-16 Dec Bihar v Orissa Bihar
13-16 Dec Jammu & Kashmir v Himachal Pradesh Jammu
13-16 Dec Kerala v Saurashtra Kerala
13-16 Dec Vidarbha v Haryana Nagpur
13-16 Dec Tripura v Services Tripura
13-16 Dec Rajasthan v Goa Rajasthan

Fifth Round:

22-25 Dec Saurashtra v Orissa Rajkot
22-25 Dec Bihar v Himachal Pradesh Bihar
22-25 Dec Jammu & Kashmir v Kerala Jammu
22-25 Dec Rajasthan v Haryanan Rajasthan
22-25 Dec Services v Vidarbha Delhi
22-25 Dec Tripura v Goa Tripura


Challenger Series

07 Feb India v India 'A' Mumbai
08 Feb India v India 'B' Mumbai
09 Feb India 'A' v India 'B' Mumbai
10 Feb Final Mumbai


Deodhar Trophy

23 Jan Central Zone v South Zone Pune
23 Jan East Zone v West Zone Mumbai
26 Jan East Zone v North Zone Baroda
26 Jan South Zone v West Zone Mumbai
29 Jan Central Zone v North Zone Pune
29 Jan East Zone v South Zone Ahmedabad
01 Feb Central Zone v East Zone Rajkot
01 Feb North Zone v West Zone Baroda
04 Feb North Zone v South Zone Ahmedabad
04 Feb Central Zone v West Zone Rajkot


Duleep Trophy

25-28 Feb North Zone v West Zone Central Zone
25-28 Feb East Zone v Visiting Team Central Zone
04-07 Mar South Zone v West Zone Central Zone
04-07 Mar Central Zone v Visiting Team Central Zone
11-14 Mar North Zone v South Zone Central Zone
11-14 Mar Central Zone v East Zone Central Zone
18-22 Mar Final Central Zone



I think the Ranji trophy will be taken by mumbai again...they look to be a strong side...your thoughts?

 

[viktor]

Delhi is in a shambles. They have 2 coaches, both dont see eye-to-eye with each other... I wonder how they will do, though Jadeja might bcome the captain which I think would be good for them...
Mumbai on the other hand have their squad ready and their training camp is already under way or is about to..
I don't know anything about the other teams, may be some one could fill in..

 

[Deja moo]

Mumbai vs Railways vs Karnataka vs Delhi(maybe) to watch out for in group A

Tamil Nadu vs Punjab vs Hyderabad in Group B .

 

[Arjun]

Delhi is in a shambles. They have 2 coaches, both dont see eye-to-eye with each other... I wonder how they will do, though Jadeja might bcome the captain which I think would be good for them...
Mumbai on the other hand have their squad ready and their training camp is already under way or is about to..
I don't know anything about the other teams, may be some one could fill in..

Delhi Cricket is full of politics. A little too much. Chopra and Gambhir will be key players, being the best opening combination in Ranji. Chopra must get back to doing what's best- scoring runs, though he is useful as a defensive opener. He's definitely one of their better players, and one of the most seasoned. Gambhir, on the other hand, throws his wicket away a little too early. He is an attacker, but must control his strokeplay. The rest of the batsmen are just average, and Mithun Manhas may have a lot to do. Bhandari is definitely a bowler to watch, and he has good support from Negi and Gill. Rajat Bhatia is also a crucial player, being a top-6 batsman and a swing bowler. No point getting Jadeja back.

Mumbai will have to get back to the kind of form that won them two consecutive Ranji titles. Vinayak Mane and Wasim Jaffer can score a lot of runs at the top, though Mane has to stay at the crease longer. Bahutule and Powar have to take the bulk of wickets, though one can also watch for the pace duo of Salvi and Munaf. The advantage of Bahutule and especially Powar is the batting- Powar has rescued them from tough spots repeatedly. One thing is certain- Chandrakant Pandit's side won't take any opposition for granted.

The key players for TN are Balaji, Sriram, Ramesh, Suresh and especially Dinesh Karthik. Dinesh is not only a good keeper ( he holds on to catches and is fast behind the stumps), but can get lots of runs. He is in the frame for national selection and must take advantage of that.

Railways are a very average batting and bowling side, but they have balance. Murali Karthik, thei strike bowler, can bat quite well. Another key player is JP Yadav. He has been performing well with bat and ball, even as selectors ignore him.

Not much is heard of the Punjab side, though with Harbhajan and Gagandeep, they are a strong bowling side. Yuvraj should get back in and score some runs. Come to think of it, lots of runs. Sodhi should get runs and support his strike bowlers, to get back into the frame for national selection.

 

[V Reddy]

I think Andhra would be the surprise package this time with MSK Prasad, Venugopal Rao and Gyaneshwar Rao playing crucial roles. It's a pity for players like Prasad playing for weak sides and trying to make a comeback b'coz their teams normally don't cross the league stages and so their performances don't get the due recognition. MSK has been averaging above 50 in the last 2 seasons but he is hardly being mentioned . Here is a nice interview of him

http://www.cricketfundas.com/mskinterview.html

 

[Arjun]

I think Andhra would be the surprise package this time with MSK Prasad, Venugopal Rao and Gyaneshwar Rao playing crucial roles. It's a pity for players like Prasad playing for weak sides and trying to make a comeback b'coz their teams normally don't cross the league stages and so their performances don't get the due recognition. MSK has been averaging above 50 in the last 2 seasons but he is hardly being mentioned . Here is a nice interview of him

http://www.cricketfundas.com/mskinterview.html

When I used to post on SportNetwork ICF and the now defunct BT-Asian Cricket, I had mentioned his name as the best batting wicketkeeper, since he was in great form then. However, with the likes of Thilak Naidu, Dinesh Karthik and Mahen Dhoni in the scene, he has been left out. His keeping is not far worse than Parthiv's but was a disappointment in Australia. His batting was crucial for Andhra, and he did a lot of good for his team as a batsman. But Andhra's main problem is their bowling, which is not of the same quality as of Mumbai, Delhi, TN and Punjab.

Starting this thread was a great idea.

 

[SJS]

Starting this thread was a great idea.

Yes. I agree.

How many of you guys have seen Indian players (other than those who are already internationals) playing and which ?

PS. I also say this because discussing 'purely' on statistics (in the case of domestic cricket that can mean absolutely anything since the quality of oposition is a huge unknown) and media reports is a bit 'incomplete' (to put it mildly and for want of a beter term).

I do understand that for those of you who do not reside in the country (and even for most who do) this is the only means but then we cant really become very sensitive about these arguments knowing both what the statistics can mean and that most of the media either doesnt cover the domestic matches or does so in perfunctory manner.

It would be great, however, to hear from those who have either seen these boys in action or when discussing their performances against known opposition. Thats why for most people performances in under 19 and 'A' team matches are more meaningful since they are covered by telecasts more often.

 

[NikhilN]

I havent seen Indian domestic on TV I think...but I was in Mumbai watching a game between mumbai and someone like 4 years ago...was as fun to watch as internationals

 

[krishneelz]

watching the pura and ing cup in australia and comparing it to Ranji Trophy you can clearly see the wide rift in technique of both the batsman and bowlers only from viewing a few Ranji Trophy matches. The pace of the indian bowlers is a laughing point aswell in seems they are bowling 20 km/h slower than the aussies

 

[NikhilN]

watching the pura and ing cup in australia and comparing it to Ranji Trophy you can clearly see the wide rift in technique of both the batsman and bowlers only from viewing a few Ranji Trophy matches. The pace of the indian bowlers is a laughing point aswell in seems they are bowling 20 km/h slower than the aussies

Indian bowling is not about pace

 

[krishneelz]

hahaha maybe it should be

 

[NikhilN]

hahaha maybe it should be

No it doesnt...not every team has to be good at everything...Indians are good with spins...and thats good enough to get wickets

 

[krishneelz]

well if they get a few quicks they mite be better and maybe even beat australia

 

[NikhilN]

well if they get a few quicks they mite be better and maybe even beat australia

you cant blame India for that...it is up to the players to bowl the style they are best at...and most of them are at spinning...but ya you are right...maybe fast bowlers with spin is what India needs to beat Australia

 

[viktor]

Since we are on it, has anybody seen Munaf play??
May be those of you in Mumbai might have. I would really like to know if he is as good as he is made out to be.

 

[SJS]

you cant blame India for that...it is up to the players to bowl the style they are best at...and most of them are at spinning...but ya you are right...maybe fast bowlers with spin is what India needs to beat Australia

Well. Nationalistic pride/bias etc aside, the fact of the matter is that when you watch Indian domestic cricket this is what stands out.

1. The batsmen are very good. They are stroke players and , believe me, their technique is pretty good and comparable with the best in domestic cricket anywhere in the world.

2. There is a dearth of really quick bowlers but you do see quite a bit of movement in the air as well as off the wicket. You must understand that this is in Indian conditions which are not the same as say in England where this is more pronounced due to conditions prevailing. However, the lack of speed and the lack of bounce in the wickets makes the batsman's job much easier and these bowlers get whacked around quite a bit.

3. There are still a lot of spinners (relative to other domestic competitions in the world) but the standard is dipping and the tactics are changing thanks to the preponderance of limited overs cricket at all levels starting from schools. Again, in the best of centres, except in long duration games, the better batsmen will whack these spinners all over the place.

4. There is a big difference in quality of cricket between the top sides and the rest. It is even more pronounced than between the top cricketing nations and the minnows. Thus the statistics tend to be considerably warped more so for batsmen due to what went above.

5. Almost all the top international players avoid and are allowed to avoid playing in the domestic season. This results in further drop in the level of competition and devaluation of the performances of the 'hopefuls'.

So. While clearly there is no dearth of talent, the way the domestic cricket is run, it is always going to be difficult to be spotted purely on merit or for statistics to be considered an adequate criteria. Only an amzing talent like Sachin, or a grabbing of every small opportunity like Pathan, or being in one of the relatively better run states like Karnataka offers you some chance to break the nepotism/regionalism/back-scratching lottery that this system promotes.

Those who criticise young Indian cricketrs are totally unaware of how the odds are stacked against them. Abhijit Kale type of episodes dont open anyone's eyes in this system and no one asks that even if (lets assume) he did offer a bribe to a selector, why did he think it might work ? Could it be because there is no proper way for a cricketer to be sure of getting a just trial/chance ???

 

[Arjun]

3. There are still a lot of spinners (relative to other domestic competitions in the world) but the standard is dipping and the tactics are changing thanks to the preponderance of limited overs cricket at all levels starting from schools. Again, in the best of centres, except in long duration games, the better batsmen will whack these spinners all over the place.

This is why limited-overs cricket is banned in India for under-19 players. A very good move.

Spinners also need the captain's help, be it in field placings, bowling changes or just plain communication. Hirwani was one talented spinner who could have been one of the best in action back then, but aptains did not use him well.

 

[Deja moo]

This is why limited-overs cricket is banned in India for under-19 players. A very good move.

.

under 17.....not under 19.

India still participates in the under 19 World cup, remember ?

 

[Arjun]

under 17.....not under 19.

India still participates in the under 19 World cup, remember ?

Sorry. Misread the line, but anyway, it's a good move.

 

[Arjun]

Virendra Sehwag to captain Delhi, Jadeja named vice-captain, but it's still murky out there