The BCCI has eased the participation regulations for the Under-19 level

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has revised the participation rules for Under-19 players for the upcoming season, with certain clauses appearing to have been relaxed.

According to a recent communique to the state associations, signed by General Manager Abey Kuruvilla, the BCCI has announced that players who fail the TW3 test can now participate in Under-19 competitions for three years under the new rules, compared to the previous allowance of two years.

The existing rule states: “Players who have failed the TW3 test at the U-19 level but have their birth registered within two years of birth will be allowed two years of participation in Under-19 tournaments.

” The amended rule now states: “Such players will be allowed a maximum of three years of Under-19 participation.”

A key aspect involves the registration of a player’s birth.

Each birth certificate includes the registration date, and the BCCI appears to permit up to two years for this registration.

Recently, births are often registered within six months, but this issue is not currently under contention.

The TW3 test, or Tanner Whitehouse 3 method, is a skeletal maturity test conducted to determine a player’s approximate age, typically performed at the under-16 level.

Another amendment concerns players with birth registrations exceeding two years.

The previous rule allowed: “Players who have passed the TW3 test at the Under-16 level but have their birth registered above two years will be allowed two years of Under-19 participation.”

The revised rule now allows: “Such players will be permitted a maximum of three years of Under-19 participation.”

An additional amendment affects direct entry into the Under-19 category.

Previously, “Players with their birth certificate registered within two years of birth were allowed to play for three years in the category.”

This has been changed from the earlier limit of two years.

However, if a player’s birth certificate is registered more than two years after birth, they will only be allowed one year of direct participation in the Under-19 category.

This rule remains unchanged.

Another important rule that remains unchanged is: “Once a player participates in any Under-19 match in the playing XI during any given season, the counting of four seasons will begin, regardless of whether the player participates in the following season or not.”