BCCI to televise more Duleep Trophy matches, says Devajit Saikia
BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said on Sunday that the 2026-27 Duleep Trophy, which begins on August 23 at the Board’s Centre of Excellence on the outskirts of Bengaluru, will see an increased number of matches televised. He made the remarks while answering a question from The Hindu.
Last year’s 2025-26 edition of the Duleep Trophy was held at the same Centre of Excellence and supporters were disappointed after first-round matches were not broadcast and the tournament was staged behind closed doors. The comments from Saikia were published on August 09, 2026 07:14 pm IST from Bengaluru.
Saikia pointed to limitations on the use of the CoE site, saying: “There are some government restrictions to how we use this land and because of that, we cannot have crowds in this campus.”
On the possibility of moving the final out of the campus to a stadium with seating, Saikia said: “We definitely appreciate your suggestion to see whether the final can be hosted in a stadium. We still have time and we’ll look into that aspect.”
Saikia also framed the expanded broadcast schedule as a way of giving supporters access to the competition, saying that increasing televised matches would give fans the chance to watch their favourite players and teams.
The 2026-27 Duleep Trophy begins on August 23 at the CoE; the BCCI has confirmed more matches will be shown on television and will consider whether the final can be held at a seated stadium before the tournament progresses.
