The Indian domestic season will start earlier than usual this year, with Duleep Trophy kicking things off on June 28, whereas the prestigious Ranji Trophy will begin on January 5.
Indian cricket's 2023-24 domestic season will kick-start with the Duleep Trophy tournament starting on June 28, while the flagship Ranji Trophy set to commence on January 5, next year. The Duleep Trophy, which will be played among six zonal teams, will be followed by Deodhar Trophy (July 24 to August 3), Irani Cup (October 1-5), the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy men's T20 national championships (October 16-November 6) and Vijay Hazare Trophy (November 23-December 15).
Ranji Trophy will be the last tournament of the men's senior calendar. The elite group league matches will be played from January 5 to February 19, while the knock-out round will be from February 23 to March 14. The duration of the tourney is for 70 days. The league matches of the plate group will be held between January 5 and February 5, while the knock-out round will be played from February 9-22.
The four elite groups will comprise eight teams, while the only plate group will have six sides. The two top teams from each group will qualify for the quarterfinals. The top four teams out of the six in the plate group will be eligible for the semi-finals. The two plate group finalists will be promoted to the elite group next season (2024-25). The two bottom teams from all elite groups combined based on points/bonus points/wins/quotient will be relegated to the plate group in the 2024-25 season.
Senior Women's Meet starts October 19
The senior women's season will begin with the national T20 championships from October 19 to November 9, followed by Inter-Zonal T20 Trophy from November 24 to December 4. It will be followed by the senior women's one-day trophy to be played between January 4-26.
The senior women's T20 Trophy and the one-day trophy will have five groups -- two with eight teams and three with seven teams. The two top teams from each of the five groups will qualify for the knock-outs. After the group matches, the teams will be ranked 1-10 based on their points/wins/NRR (Net Run-Rate). The teams ranked one-six will directly qualify for the quarterfinals, while the four teams ranked seven-ten will play a pre-quarterfinal round to decide the remaining two slots.
(With inputs from PTI)