Zol to miss Ranji final, BCCI thinks U-19 camp more important

The Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) decision to send Vijay Zol to an U-19 World Cup camp, hence forcing him to miss the Ranji Trophy final is quite baffling. Zol has scored 517 runs in eight matches for Maharashtra at an average of 51.70 — scoring a double century and two fifties in the process. He was vital in their run to the final for the first time in 20 years, but the BCCI thinks otherwise. Now this is the vital question to ask — where will a player grow more or get better? By taking part in an U-19 camp or by playing a high-stakes final? The answer is quite self-explanatory. [caption id=“attachment_1353585” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Vijay Zol. Getty Images[/caption] The timing is also quite bizarre. The U-19 World Cup starts on 15 February and the Ranji final is from 29 January. Even if Zol plays the final, he will be get at least 10 full days with his U-19 team at the camp. “I wish these two important events of my cricketing career didn’t clash,” Zol was quoted as saying in this Mumbai Mirror report. “Leading India for the under-19 World Cup is important, there is no doubt about that. But Maharashtra is in Ranji final and I wanted to be a part of this historic juncture,” said added. Zol then admits that playing in the Ranji has worked in his favour and that the prospect of facing top bowlers from the country clearly makes things easier for him in an age-group category tournament. If all this wasn’t enough, then take this — the U-19 camp in question is all about mental strengthening and training. It comes back to the same conundrum — is Zol going to get mentally stronger by meditating at a camp and being put through practice situations, or by playing a Ranji final? It’s like asking a star teenager of Manchester United or Liverpool to take part in an U-19 camp while missing a major cup final. BCCI’s general manager of cricket operations Ratnakar Shetty gave a very stoic explanation to this step: “It was told to the Maharashtra Cricket Association that Zol will be released only for the semifinal,” Shetty told ESPNcricinfo. For those following cricket, this is nothing new. Last year, the BCCI prevented Ajinkya Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ravindra Jadeja from playing the Ranji Final. They all ended up sitting on the bench as India played. The excuse then though was stronger — at least they were in the senior Indian team. Zol scored a vital 91 not out while chasing a target of 252 against Mumbai in the quarters — but it seems that he will have to force himself to do mental exercises at a training camp while constantly thinking that he could have been part of Ranji history. Hardly improves a player’s concentration, does it?   Click here to read the full Mumbai Mirror report and here for the ESPNCricinfo report.