Bangalore, Sept 01: Cricket board's technical committee today recommended that the Under-19 national tournament be converted into a first class event on the lines of Ranji Trophy from the 2004-05 season. The committee, chaired by Sunil Gavaskar, also endorsed the view expressed at a conclave of coaches and captains in Mumbai in June to revert the Duleep Trophy tournament on the zonal format.
The captains felt that "the sense of identification" was lacking in the present format, Gavaskar said. The committee also recommended covering the pitches during Duleep Trophy encounters. BCCI secretary S K Nair said one foreign team – likely to be Kenya or Bangladesh -- would participate in the Duleep Trophy tournament along with five zonal teams.
Gavaskar said there was also an option of inviting a "champion side" from Australia and England but added that it could be either Kenya or Bangladesh as BCCI had an "obligation" to encourage the sport in the region, and also that these two nations did not get much opportunities to play four-day events. Bureau Report