The Indian team currently in Australia have been ravaged with injuries to a lot of players. The problem is so severe that the team is actually struggling to find 11 fit players for the fourth and final test at Brisbane. Some of the injuries were on the field while some could have been avoided. The real culprit is the Board of Control for Cricket in India. Their mindless schedule has certainly affected the preparation.
Far too many injured
The list of players who are injured. Rohit Sharma, Ishant Sharma, Jadeja, Ashwin, Vihari, Umesh, Rishabh Pant, Shami, Bumrah, Rahul & Agarwal. This is an entire 11 that is injured. Of these players, Pant, Jadeja & Shami the rest were injured on the field because of some aggressive bowling. The rest were injured because of over exertion.
A rather lengthy IPL
The BCCI were determined to conduct a full-blown IPL just before the Australian series. IPL as we all know is highly competitive and as such all the players are required to be at their best because that is the least the respective franchise expects of them. So much so that the main players were never given a game off to rest and recuperate. Granted IPL is only 40 overs but it involves lot of running around and as such the players will be exhausted after every game.
IPL went on for more than 2 months with 14 games each and a further 4 games for the finalists. This is after more than 6 months of absolutely no games played anywhere because of the pandemic. Not to mention the mandatory quarantine of 2 weeks just before the IPL. During the 6 months, all sporting activities were stopped and this includes practise session as well. The players would have been challenged to maintain their fitness. For the players to be involved in such a competitive game following a long layoff and just before an important series, it surely would have affected their fitness and each muscle in their bodies.
Bowlers are much more affected
More than the batsmen, it is the bowlers who will be affected by such a tournament right after a lengthy layoff. As such Ishant & Kumar were injured right in the middle of IPL and except for Rohit, the others missed the entire Australian series. Both Ishant & Kumar would have been priceless in the series. Now the most important part of the bowling attack, Jasprit Bumrah is not available for the crucial series decided test at Brisbane. The blame must be laid squarely on IPL because Bumrah bowled more than 100 overs and a further 150 overs in the Australian series. He is bound to break somewhere and it happened right before the test. Considering the state of the Australian batting and the strength of the Indian bowling, a fully fit Indian team would have by now won the series. Thanks to IPL and the board, it is proving difficult.
Indian quarantine facilities and complaints
Far too much has been read into the Indian team’s reluctance to travel of Brisbane and their reluctance to be under strict quarantine in Brisbane. This is ridiculous. The Indian players have been in bio-secure bubble for more than 5 months. That is 150 days of not meeting their family and friends and not even venturing outside of the bubble. This certainly is difficult for a human and yet they have not complained until now when they were required to be under strict quarantine.
The entire team were in quarantine before the start of the series. They have not ventured out of the zone and to make them undergo one more quarantine is nonsense. The Indians were right to protest. They are not asking for much. They do not want to go to shopping centres or visit movie halls. All they want is be able to move within the confines of the hotel freely. To take away that from the team is stupid.
One argument is that some Australians were also under quarantine for 5 months. Yes true but they are only 3 players from the current team. Also, they are playing in their home country. Also, their families are allowed to visit the players. Hence, this is not even a comparison worthy of debating.
Second argument could be that IPL is an Indian first class tournament and the players were in the bubble because they chose to. They is some merit in this argument and the blame for that falls on the board specifically.
Mental health
Just how important physical health of a player is, so is his mental health. This is something which is growing among the cricketers. There are lot of instances when a player was withdrawn from the tour because of mental health. The Indian players who are in the bubble for 5 months is bound to suffer from mental fatigue. Small concession like moving with the hotel corridor, speaking with team members will do much to alleviate that mental fatigue. This will only help the Indian team to perform at their optimum level. Alas, maybe the Australian board does not want the Indian team to be peaceful mentally now that they are under tremendous pressure to win the last game. Especially, after the way the Indians have performed from Melbourne, there is a feeling that India with depleted resources might pull off the impossible and win the series.
Other topics related to the BCCI can be read here, here and here.