Beware! BCCI cracks down: New bone test rule to catch over-age players

NEW DELHI: In a notable development, the BCCI has introduced an additional bone test at the junior level to ensure that young cricketers don’t miss out on a season due to the "+1 factor" currently applied in the eligibility calculation, which often disqualifies players by a narrow margin.As per the existing procedure, a cricketer’s age is determined through the TW3 method (used to assess bone age), and a "+1" is added to the result to project eligibility for the next season in the same age group.

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With the updated rule, players in the Under-16 boys’ category will now be permitted to undergo a second bone test in the following season, should the "+1" factor make them ineligible in the previous one."It is being done to have an exact age and make sure that no player loses due to arithmetical calculation rather than scientific calculation," a BCCI source told PTI.Currently, the bone age limit is set at 16.5 years for U-16 boys and 15 years for U-15 girls."This means that the bone age of a player has to be 16.4 or below in the following season in male cricketers and 14.9 or below in case of females for participation," the source said.To further illustrate the new policy, if a male U-16 player’s bone test result in the 2025-26 season shows 15.4 years, he won’t be tested again the next season.

Instead, one year will be added arithmetically, bringing his bone age to 16.4 for the 2026-27 season, keeping him eligible to compete.Conversely, if a player’s bone age is 15.5 or more, adding one year makes it 16.5 or above, exceeding the eligibility threshold of 16.4 and ruling him out of the U-16 tournament.

"It's possible that this arithmetical calculation does not accurately reflect a player's actual age, which could cause them to lose out on a year of eligibility," the source added.For U-15 girls, if a bone test shows a player is 13.9 years old this season, she qualifies to play next season with a bone age of 14.9.But if she tests at 14 or older this season, she can participate now, but not the following year, given the 14.9 age cap.