NEW DELHI: Following an abysmal domestic season, Delhi & District Cricket Association (DDCA) plans a major overhaul of its system and looking to start preparing for next season right away with focus on a younger pool of players.
DDCA is appointing a three-member technical committee comprising Madan Lal, Sunil Valson and Vinay Lamba to review the season and suggest what needs to be done.
Sources told TOI that DDCA is also planning to seek clarity on veteran pacers Ishant Sharma and Pradeep Sangwan's career plans before they chalk out a roadmap for next season. Ishant bowled just 23 overs in two Ranji Trophy matches and that has not gone down well with the management.
"The performances have been disappointing, and it needs immediate course correction. We are planning to build a pool of young players. For starters, we need to groom a young captain. Nobody was groomed after Gautam Gambhir. Every player who will be picked next season will have to be fully committed to the Delhi team first," DDCA president Rohan Jaitley told TOI.
Round-the-year structure like NCA
Jaitley also said that it was imperative to have a structure where cricket is played round the year. "We already have a pool of 160 registered players. We have appointed people to look after different aspects of the game. Every player's record will now be monitored round the year like it is done in NCA. We should have a pool ready before monsoon," Jaitley claimed.
Having multi-format leagues
DDCA has always had just 40-over format leagues played with the red ball. Jaitley informed that plans were afoot to introduce tournaments in various formats. "We are planning to have multiple tournaments. There should be leagues played with both red and white balls. Hopefully, we can structure a multi-day tournament by April end," Jaitley said. Jaitley also said that the association is close to formalizing insurance for the players.
