The government has sent a proposal to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to organize a match between India and World XI on August 22 to mark the occasion of 75 years of independence of the country. Sources gave this information. Sources said that the Ministry of Culture has sent the proposal and is in talks with BCCI officials to try to feed top Indian players and popular foreign cricketers for the match as part of the ‘Azadi ka Amrit’ festival campaign.
BCCI sources said the proposal is currently being discussed as there are a lot of “operational and logistical” things involved in bringing in international players. “We have received a proposal from the government to organize a cricket match between India XI and World XI on 22nd August. We will need at least 13-14 players for the World XI, so we have to know about their availability. ,
He also said that during this time English domestic cricket will also be going on and the Caribbean Premier League will also start. The BCCI is looking into whether international players will need to be financially compensated for their participation. As far as services of international cricketers are concerned, the top BCCI officials will be in Birmingham for the ICC Annual Conference (July 22-26) where they may talk to other boards to release some of their players for matches in India. .
Sources said that it will not be difficult to get the top stars of the Indian team in the match. The three ODI series against Zimbabwe ends on 20 August. Some players from this series come only on 22nd August, so they will not be available for the match. However, top players like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant (starting in Sri Lanka on August 27) will be available before leaving for the Asia Cup as they are not going to Zimbabwe.
BCCI sources said that requests will be made to all the Indian players and they are likely to join the team for the match as the match is being conducted under the aegis of the Government of India. He said that at this point of time the only concern would be to include the top players in the World XI. It is not yet clear whether this match will get the status of international T20 or a friendly match. This is yet to be confirmed and if this match is held then there is every possibility that it will be held at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground in Delhi. The Amrit Mahotsav campaign of the Government is an initiative to celebrate 75 years of Independence.