PONDICHERRY: After a four-year break, the Deodhar Trophy returns to the Indian cricketing calendar, with the tournament set to kick off on Monday here at the Cricket Association of Pondicherry grounds.
Most teams in the tournament are evenly matched with players who have done well in last year’s Vijay Hazare tournament and the IPL finding a place in their respective zonal squads. Like the Duleep Trophy, the one-day tournament reverts to a zonal format, with the six teams playing each other once in a round-robin format on alternate
days before the top two fight for the title on August 3.
At a time when one-day cricket is fighting for relevance, this edition of the Deodhar Trophy might have a small purpose considering it is an ODI World Cup year.
Though it is understood that the selectors have already shortlisted 20 players for the prestigious event, the tournament offers fringe players to show what they can do and make a last-minute impression in case a spot opens up closer to the event.
With the Vijay Hazare Trophy set to be held only after the World Cup, the next two weeks could become crucial for players and the selectors to finalise backup options.
Some of the players to watch out for include the likes of pacer Shivam Mavi, all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, and Washington Sundar, who was part of the one-day set-up as recently as the three-match series against Australia earlier this year.
