No toss, no problem!

The recent proposal to do away with the toss in Indian domestic cricket was first made way back in 2004 according to former BCCI Chief Administrative Officer Prof Ratnakar ShettyShetty told midday on Sunday that the then technical committee headed by batting legend Sunil Gavaskar recommended this after a conclave for Ranji Trophy captains and coaches but it did not get approved by the Boardrsquos Working Committee Vilas GodbolePending the Apex Councilrsquos approval there will be no toss made at the U23 CK Nayudu games from the 202425 seasonBCCI didnrsquot accept it thenldquoWhen Gavaskar was BCCIrsquos technical committee chairman in 2003 he started a conclave for domestic captains and coaches In 2004 the technical committee communicated to the Board that they had discussed suggestions and recommended those for consideration At that time there was also talk of teams in England playing without the toss but we BCCI did not implement that BCCI received a recommendation from his Gavaskarrsquos committee which included two important thingsmdashto play fiveday Ranji Trophy matches as against four days in the initial stage of the tournament and eliminate the toss But it didnrsquot get approved by the BCCIrsquos Working Committeerdquo said ShettyHardik Tamore and Rajesh PawarRecently the fourmember group comprising Indiarsquos head coach Rahul Dravid National Cricket Academy chief VVS Laxman chief selector Ajit Agarkar and exIndia pacer Abey Kuruvilla who is BCCIrsquos General Manager submitted a proposal to BCCI secretary Jay Shah in which they felt the toss should be done away with in the upcoming U23 CK Nayudu Trophy The visiting captain gets to choose if he wants to bat or bowl firstldquoThey BCCI are trying it at the CK Nayudu Trophy instead of Ranji Trophy so at least we will get feedbackrdquo Shetty remarkedMeanwhile former Mumbai U23 head coach Vilas Godbole who guided the team to CK Nayudu triumphs in 201213 and 201314 welcomed the idea ldquoThe BCCI appears to have taken this suggestion on board because pitches are prepared according to the home teamrsquos strength Itrsquos a good moverdquo the former firstclass cricketer saidWhen asked whether this decision will give visiting teams some advantage he remarked ldquoSomeone will get an advantage but it may help make pitches sporting and there will be no tampering of pitchesrdquoNo home advantage nowCurrent Mumbai U23 head coach Rajesh Pawar who guided Mumbai to the CK Nayudu Trophy win in 202122 followed by a runnerup finish in 202223 also hailed the change ldquoItrsquos a good decision because on most occasions teams get the home advantage through the pitch Now teams will get fair sporting pitches Yes there are some advantages and some disadvantages in every situation but in this case there will be more advantages for visiting teams We will get a better idea after the season concludesrdquo Pawar remarkedWicketkeeperbatsman Hardik Tamore who led Mumbai to victory in the 202122 CK Nayudu Trophy it was an U25 tournament in that season said ldquoHenceforth there will be no home advantage for the hosts and the match will last four days as per stipulation This move will help improve domestic cricketrdquo Tamore said from Yorkshire where he is playing club cricket for Sheriff Hutton Bridge CC