The Board for Cricket Control in India has had an Apex Council meeting on June 14, where they formulated several policies apart from fixing dates for major domestic leagues in India. As per the meeting, India's most prestigious red ball tournament The 2025-26 Ranji Trophy, will be played in two phases. The first phase will be played between October 15 and October 19. And the second phase will occur between February 6 to 28.

 

However, there are some changes brought in the promotion plate in not just the Ranji Trophy but all domestic multi-day tournaments across the age groups. Earlier, 2 teams were promoted and 2 were relegated after the tournaments concluded. But this time, the board decided to promote just one and relegate one.

 

The decision came after Meghalaya's defeat in all seven games of the Ranji Trophy Elite division last year. Notably, in the 2018-19 season, BCCI added nine teams in the tournament, mostly from the Northeast. However, according to the board officials, that has affected the quality of the tournaments.

 

Well, whether Meghalaya will be dejected or not will totally depend on their performance. If Meghalaya finishes last in the Elite group, it will be relegated to Plate for the next season (2026–27). A BCCI note, as quoted by PTI said,

 

“All multi-day men's tournaments (senior and junior), 1 team will be promoted and 1 team will be relegated for the 2026–27 season grouping."

 

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Changes in Duleep Trophy and SMAT

 

For the Duleep Trophy, the zonal format is returning, with the Zonal Selection Committee picking the teams. Meanwhile, the tournament has been scheduled form August 28 to September 15. And the Irani Cup will be played  in October, from 1 to 5.

 

The Plate division has been brought back in all one-day competitions, including the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Earlier, knockout games followed the quarterfinal, semifinal, and final format, but from this season, the qualified teams will first play additional Super League matches.

 

The group-toppers from A and B will then meet directly in the final, while the bottom six from last season will form the Plate Group. The SMAT is scheduled from November 26 to December 18.

 

Furthermore, for all white-ball tournaments, net run rate, not head-to-head, will be the tie-breaker when teams are level on points and wins.

 

Proposed venue for Ind vs NZ series

 

New Zealand will be playing a white ball series in India, comprising 3 ODIs and 5 T20. The proposed venues are Hyderabad, Rajkot, Indore, Nagpur, Ranchi, Guwahati, Visakhapatnam, and Thiruvananthapuram, respectively.

 

India vs New Zealand Series proposed Schedule

 

Venue	Match	Date
Hyderabad	1st ODI	January 11
Rajkot	2nd ODI	January 14
Indore	3rd ODI	January 18
Nagpur	1st T20I	January 21
Ranchi	2nd T20I	January 23
Guwahati	3rd T20I	January 25
Visakhapatnam	4th T20I	January 28
	5th T20I	January 31