Indian board restores domestic event after protest

The Indian cricket board said on Saturday it will work out a schedule for a key one-day domestic tournament after moves to axe the event were met with angry protests.

"The schedule of the Deodhar Trophy will be finalised at the board's working committee meeting in August," the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said in a press release.

The Indian media had reported that the Deodhar Trophy was being dropped from next year's calendar to fit in matches of the Indian Premier League (IPL), leading to protests by the right-wing Shiv Sena party in Mumbai.

The party workers shouted slogans outside the BCCI headquarters, accusing the board of insulting the late D.B. Deodhar, a doyen of domestic cricket who hailed from Maharashtra, which is also the Sena stronghold.

"The Board has insulted Marathi pride by cancelling the tournament," Sena leader Subhash Desai was quoted as saying by The Times of India on Friday.

"If the decision is not reversed, Shiv Sena will not allow a single IPL match in the state," Desai said.

The Deodhar Trophy is India's premier domestic limited-overs tournament. Since its inception in 1973-74, it has been played every year.

The third edition of the popular IPL is scheduled for March-April next year.