Domestic cricket in India has a history dating back to almost the same time as Indian International history. Thus India, by naming its premier domestic championships after pioneers who have contributed immensely to the game, pays tribute to them by bringing out generations of world class cricketers, who come into the national side, after making a mark in the following competitions. Some of the famous Cricket Trophies of India

1. The Indian Ranji Trophy: The Ranji Trophy was started in the 1934-1935 season and it was named after KS Ranjit Sinhji, the Prince of Nawanagar. He played for Sussex and also played for England between 1896 and 1902. He was also popularly known as Ranji. The Ranji Trophy is the premier domestic cricket competition held in India. The games are played amongst state and city sides. Ranji Trophy is India`s equivalent to county cricket in England and the Pura Cup competition held in Australia.

While most of the teams represent the different states of India, Maharashtra and Mumbai have separate teams, so do Gujarat and Vadodara. Apart from the states, teams like Railways and Services are also represented. As per the old format, which was changed in 2002-03, the teams were divided into the 5 zones - North, West, East, Central and South. Teams in zone played each other in the league stage. The top 2 teams (till1991-92) and top 3 after that from the zones played each other in the knockout round through which the eventual winner was decided. The format changed in the 2002-03 season with the elite and the plate divisions coming into play.

In the Elite group, there are two pools of 8 and 7 teams. In the plate division, there are two groups of six teams each. The top two from the groups make it to the knockout phase. Interestingly, the finalists of the plate division get a promotion to the Elite Division next year while the last two from the elite group are demoted to the plate group. Mumbai has been the most successful Ranji team winning it 32 times. A Ranji One-Day trophy has also held. Railways won the latest edition of the One-Day forecast.

2. The Duleep Trophy: The Duleep Trophy is named after Kumar Shri Duleep Sinhji, the nephew of KS Ranjitsinhji. It is a tournament being played in India since 1961-62. Initially, 5 sides from the 5 zones played each other in a knockout format. The championship was changed into a league format from 1993-94. West Zone beat East Zone by 5 wickets in the 2005-06 Duleep Trophy final.

3. The Irani Trophy: The Irani Trophy tournament was conceived during the 1959-60 season to mark the completion of 25 years of the Ranji Trophy Championship and is named after the late Z R Irani, who was connected with the Board of Control for Cricket in India from its inception in 1928 till his death in 1970. Before becoming president of the board from 1966 to 1969, Irani was the honorary treasurer (from 1948 to 1962), and one of the vice-presidents from 1963 to 1965. In appreciation of his services to Indian cricket, the BCCI instituted a trophy in his name, to be presented to the winners of a match to be played between the Ranji Trophy champions of the preceding year and a selected Rest of India XI.

The Irani Trophy game ranks very high in popularity and importance. It is one of the few domestic matches that are followed with keen interest by cricket lovers in the country. Leading players take part in the game, which has often been a sort of selection trial to pick the Indian team for foreign tours. The Irani Trophy match is played between the current Ranji Trophy winners and Rest of India Team. Initially, the match was played towards the end part of a season. But post 1965-66, an Irani Trophy game has always signaled the start of a new domestic season. Irani Trophy is quite popular because leading cricketers often take part in the match. Also it is seen as a good opportunity for the players to catch the eye of the selectors.

4. The Deodhar Trophy: The Deodhar trophy is named after Dinkar Balwant Deodhar, known as the grand old man of Indian cricket. Deodhar was born in Pune He was one of the premier first class batsman to lead Maharashtra. In the 1980s, the newly established one-day zonal championship, the Deodhar Trophy, was named after him. He died in 1993 at the age of 101 at his birthplace, Pune.

Deodhar Trophy is a one-day domestic competition. Played in the standard 50 over format, the five sides (North zone, South zone, East zone, West zone and Central Zone) battle each other on league basis. Started in 1973-74 season, South Zone won the inaugural tournament. All teams play each other. There are no semi-finals or finals. The team emerging with the most points at the end of all the matches ends up as the winner. North Zone won the trophy for the year 2005-06 - the 11th time they have managed to do it, the most by any team in the Deodhar Trophy.

5. The NKP Salve Challenger Trophies: The Board of Control introduced this trophy in 1994-95 for Cricket in India. BCCI started this tournament considering that India plays a huge number of one-day games at the international level. Salve was a former Board of Control for Cricket in India and the man who was responsible for India hosting the World Cup in 1987. Hence, the Challenger series was renamed as the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy in 1998-99. The Challenger series is seen as a tournament where out of form international cricketers can try to play themselves back in form but more importantly, it is a stage where youngsters can prove their talent against the best cricketers in the country. The tournament takes place in October, prior to the start of the Ranji Trophy. Three teams - India Senior, India A & India B - take part in the tournament. The series was not held in 2002-03. Expectedly, India Senior have won the tournament 7 times, they are also the defending champions.