Mumbai, Jan 5 (IANS): The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday postponed the upcoming Ranji Trophy, Col CK Nayudu Trophy, and senior women's T20 League for the 2021-22 season in the wake of the rising COVID-19 cases in the country.

The Ranji Trophy was not held last season due to COVID-19 but was set to commence this month. The tournament was scheduled to be held in six cities -- Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, and Trivandrum.

Meanwhile, the CK Nayudu Trophy was scheduled to begin this month whereas the Women's league was scheduled to start in February.

Notably, the Indian cricket board had successfully conducted the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy already this season before the recent spike in cases.

The BCCI said that it took the decision keeping in mind the safety of the players, support staff, match officials, and other participants involved.

"BCCI does not want to compromise the safety of the players, support staff, match officials, and other participants involved and hence, has decided to put the three tournaments on hold till further notice. The BCCI will continue to assess the situation and take a call on the start of the tournaments accordingly," the board secretary Jay Shah said in a statement.

"BCCI thanks and continues to appreciate the efforts of the healthcare workers, state associations, players, support staff, match officials, and all the service providers who put their best foot forward to host more than 700 matches across 11 tournaments in the current 2021-22 domestic season," it added.

Last week, the BCCI had also postponed the Under-16 Vijay Merchant Trophy, which was scheduled to begin in January 2022, following the fresh surge of COVID-19 cases and the growing threat of the Omicron variant.

COVID-19 cases have been multiplying in India in recent weeks with several states announcing night and weekend curfews, amid other forms of restrictions. West Bengal recorded 9,073 new Covid-19 cases in the latest single-day spike on Tuesday, Maharashtra 18,466, and Delhi 5,481.