New Delhi, July 20 (IBNS) The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Friday said the 2012-13 domestic season will begin with the Irani Cup game between Rajasthan, the Ranji Trophy champions of 2011-12, and the Rest of India, at Jaipur, from September 21 to 25.
It will be followed by the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy and the Duleep Trophy, in October.
The NKP Salve Challenger Trophy will feature Bengal, the 2011-12 Vijay Hazare Trophy winners, and two other teams picked by the All-India Senior Selection Committee.
The Ranji Trophy will commence on 2 November.
The Ranji Trophy groups, as per the new format, are as follows:
Three teams from Group A, three from Group B, and two from Group C, will qualify for the knockout stage, which will be played in January 2013.
The fourth edition of the Raj Singh Dungarpur Corporate Trophy will be played after the Ranji Trophy final. The first three editions of the tournament had been played in September.
The Corporate Trophy will be followed by the second Irani Cup game of the season, in which the 2012-13 Ranji Trophy winners will take on the Rest of India.
Subsequent editions of the Irani Cup will be played after the Ranji Trophy final of the same season.
The season will end with the limited-overs tournaments – the inter-state One-Day, the Vijay Hazare Trophy, the Deodhar Trophy, and finally, the inter-state T20 League and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
