It takes a great deal of organisational skill to conduct an event like the Indian Premier League (IPL) in another country. In the 13-year history of the competition, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is going to do this for the third time. Given that the money generated from the IPL sustains the cricket ecosystem in India and helps it flourish, the BCCI does its best to stage the tournament.

Even in the time of pandemic, officials headed by president Sourav Ganguly are making every effort to conduct the event successfully, taking preventive measures like putting up the eight teams in different hotels in the UAE and creating a huge bio-bubble.

If these efforts are to be commended, the BCCI will also be expected to pay adequate attention to the cricket played in the country. Inter-state tournaments for men and women in different age groups constitute the base of Indian cricket, on which the stars thrive.

With nearly 20 annual tournaments and over 2,000 matches, this is by far the busiest domestic cricket calendar in the world. Valid criticism of administrative high-handedness notwithstanding, board officials deserve credit for providing quality infrastructure for these matches. Keeping this in mind, it becomes imperative for them to protect the system in times of uncertainty.

There are talks that because a few months of cricket will be lost, the BCCI will reduce the number of domestic tournaments this season. National one-dayers for men, T20s for women and a few junior tournaments are among these. While a shortened calendar will have room for fewer events, the BCCI has to make sure due attention is paid to them.

Scrapping junior events is a bad idea because that is the supply line. Also, it reflects badly on the BCCI if it goes all out to have the IPL and turns a blind eye to the youngsters. They say the IPL is important because it keeps everything else going. To stay true to that, Ganguly and Co must see to it that events at the grassroots are not neglected in this drive to maximise profit from the IPL.