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Kolkata: According to the BCCI’s acting president CK Khanna, there will be neutral within zones this Ranji Trophy season. The board has decided to implement this policy to ensure no pitch tamering take splace at domestic levels.
Previously it was suggested that the curators would travel from one zone to another however the pitch committee headed by Dalit Singh decided to opt curators from within the zone to take care of the pitches.
“I am glad that my suggestions were accepted by the BCCI technical committee. If a Ranji Trophy match is played in Haryana, the curator from Himachal Pradesh can come and oversee the pitch preparation rather than someone coming from Kolkata,” Khanna explained.
Even in terms of cost and logistical challenges, it is helping BCCI. “By rotating the curators within the zone, it also helps the board cost wise and logistically it saves time for pitch preparation. The technical committee took all these factors into consideration before deciding on this new rule,” Khanna said.
The former DDCA vice-president also pointed out the knowledge of the curators in the same zone while preparing the pitch. “A curator from south zone may not be completely well versed with the playing conditions in north zone. So, using curators from within the zone will help in preparing the best wickets,” Khanna said while adding that the board will keep a check on all the Ranji Trophy games to end pitch tampering from home teams for good.
As of now due to the reformation of the Lodha committee, the situation of the BCCI office bearers is still stagnant. It has been clearly mentioned that if any reformation is to be implemented then the permission has to be seeked from the committee.
“I had proposed the idea in the meeting yesterday in front of Rahul Johri, the CEO of BCCI which was accepted” Khanna told www.xtratime.in
However it is to been seen as to how the Lodha Committee reacts to this decision.