Shardul Thakur expressed that it is extremely challenging for domestic players to play ten games with three-day gaps

Shardul Thakur highlights the congested Ranji Trophy schedule after scoring a game-changing century against Tamil Nadu in the semi-final.

India all-rounder Shardul Thakur has called for longer breaks between Ranji Trophy matches to help players recover and prepare. The competition is lengthy, and Mumbai, for example, would have played ten first-class games in under ten weeks should they reach the final.

Shardul described the current schedule, where teams have just three days between matches, as 'difficult'. The schedule is getting tighter and tighter.

He warned that if the boys continue to play like this for two more seasons, there will be a lot of injuries in the country. He hit a maiden first-class century to rescue Mumbai from 106 for 6 and open up a 207-run lead with one wicket to spare.

"Next year, they [the BCCI] have to re-look at it, and give more [of a] break. When I remember playing Ranji Trophy back in the day, good seven to eight years back, [the] first three games used to have [a] three-day break, and then it was [a] four-day break, and knockouts were played [with] five-day breaks."

Due to the expanding IPL window, the BCCI has had to schedule all senior men's competitions within a smaller timeframe than usual. As a result, some prominent first-class cricketers have expressed private concerns about the relevance of tournaments such as the Duleep Trophy and Deodhar Trophy, as well as the zonal first-class and one-day competitions that mark the beginning of the domestic season.

In addition to injuries, teams have also had to deal with travel fatigue due to the compressed schedule. For instance, Gujarat had their flight to New Delhi cancelled the day after their home fixture against Karnataka in Ahmedabad.

Subsequently, their onward flight to Delhi was delayed. When they finally arrived in the capital, they were stranded in the airport overnight. As a result, they had to drive amid heavy fog to Chandigarh on the third morning. This left them with no net sessions prior to the game, which was eventually cancelled due to fog.

Thakur cited Mumbai's example to explain how the conditions were particularly challenging for fast bowlers. He stated it's 100% because Mohit [Avasthi] also suffered an injury in the sixth game. Avasthi was rested by Mumbai during the league-stage contest against Chhattisgarh due to a hamstring-related issue.