What happened in England recently is a case in point. Indian batsmen struggled on wickets which offered seam movement, pace and bounce and the team returned home without a single victory in the entire tour.

That seemed to have shaken up the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which decided to have competitive wickets for all domestic matches. The BCCI also conducted a workshop for the curators of all its affiliated associations before the Ranji season on zonal basis and asked them to provide sporting wickets. However, very few associations are following the guidelines.

"The idea is to have wickets where we could have a fair competition between bat and ball. Besides, our cricketers shouldn't feel uncomfortable on lively wickets when they tour abroad. So, we have asked all the curators to prepare sporting wickets which should have something for everyone. The next generation of batsmen should be adept at playing both pace and spin and that can only happen when we have good wickets," a BCCI official said.

The dead wickets, which neither offer pace nor turn, are also a big concern for the BCCI. "They don't serve any purpose. We don't get enough quick bowlers in the country and the dead tracks are one of the main reasons for that. We have seen how pacers like Munaf Patel, Sreesanth and RP Singh have reduced their pace. The more pace you provide on flat wickets, the more you get hit.

"Besides, the chances of the bowlers getting injured are greater on flat wickets where they have to put extra effort during tense situations. Not only in Ranji Trophy, we want each and every match right from the junior ranks to women cricket to be held on competitive wickets. However, the BCCI can only guide, it can't force anyone," he said.

While BCCI is thinking right, the associations don't seem to be interested. They continue to prepare wickets according to the strengths of their own sides. The recently-concluded Mumbai-Rajasthan match at the Cricket Club of India (CCI) in Mumbai was the perfect example where the hosts overhauled Rajasthan's huge 530 with ease. Good seamers like Pankaj Singh and Deepak Chahar toiled on a docile track.

Even Mumbai lower-order enjoyed batting and contributed handsomely to the team's cause.

"It won't be easy to implement this. No association will provide green top to Mumbai if Zaheer Khan and Ajit Agarkar are sharing the new ball. There's lot at stake in the Ranji Trophy these days. If you lose, you have to answer a lot of questions; several heads rolls after the season because everyone wants to win.

"It happens in international cricket too. You tell me when was the last time Indian got a turner on foreign soil? It's a good initiative but will take time before people consider the larger interest of the game," a state association official tolf TOI.