Can cricketers handle too much cricket?

With the dashing opener ruled out of the T-20 World Cup with a shoulder injury, speculations are rife about how much he knew about the injury before embarking on the tour. Daggers have been drawn — some of them pointing at Viru and some at the Board. But the question being asked is — are our cricketers playing too much cricket and is the IPL to blame?

Too much cricket?
The calendar of the Indian cricket team is packed and the itinerary is bursting at the seams. According to ICC’s Future Tours Programme listed till 2011, a test playing country can play a maximum of 13 to 15 tests per year and 30 to 35 ODIs in a year. While most countries do not play as many, thanks to the cricket crazy nation that India is and the money involved, our cricketers end up playing the maximum. Add to this frenetic pace and stress of two T-20 world cups in the last 12 months and two IPL tournaments, and our cricketers have been more than put to the grind.
Then there’s the local league of Ranji and Duleep trophies that most players need to play to make the cut. This is definitely too much cricket for the same bunch of players, feel experts. “If the intensity is high on the field and the players are playing frequently, the chances of getting injuries are certainly high,” says Dr Kannan Pugazhendi, sports physician. “We will have more injuries in the future if players do not pick and choose the number of games they want to play.”

Injury management
For many years, Team India has focussed more on cricketing skills rather than the fitness part of it. The Sehwag fiasco has brought to light this gaping hole in the system, feel experts. “T-20 is a high-intensity sport and there’s a lot of physical activity associated with it,” says fitness trainer Ramji Srinivasan.

The travel between different venues is also bound to tire a player and that should be accounted for too, says Ramji. “However, some of them cannot be predicted. For example, leg injuries can even happen if you step on the ball while fielding and that can happen in any version of the game,” he adds.
However, according to physiotherapist Gel Solomon, “T-20 wears out players more than test or one-day cricket as the stress levels on both mind and body are higher here.”

Blame it on the player!
On the current imbroglio of Team India, there’s a school of thought that puts the entire blame on Sehwag, because he travelled to England knowing that he was nursing an injury. Former cricketer and television personality Bosskey compares it to the case of Andrew Flintoff during the IPL, when the England all-rounder deserted the Chennai Super Kings citing injury. “The player should have some amount of responsibility,” he states, “If a player is not fully fit, it’s his duty to keep the people concerned informed about it.”
Cricket commentator and former player Arun Lal is of the same view. In a television programme, he admitted that he found it a “bit strange” that Sehwag continued to play the IPL semifinal despite carrying an injury.

It happens!
The vagaries of the game, combined with the glitz and glamour, add charm to it. And, injuries are part and parcel of this very charm, feel some players. “Even if you sneeze on the cricket field, there are eight experts to examine you,” says former Ranji cricketer Vikram Mani, “There is no way you can hide an injury on the international arena.” He also feels that there is less pressure on the players to perform in T-20 cricket, when compared to other versions. “It’s fine if you come good once in 2-3 games,” he feels, “That reduces a lot of the mental pressure.”