The current Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) management and its workload policies regarding star pacer Jasprit Bumrah have drawn harsh criticism from former India cricketer and ex-chairman of selectors Sandeep Patil.
The 68-year-old, who was a member of the Indian team that won the World Cup in 1983, feels that such policies would never have been imagined when he was playing or working for the cricket board. Bumrah had announced that he would only play in three of the five Test matches in the series against England.
Bumrah played in all five matches of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, but he suffered an injury shortly after, which many people think was caused by an excessive workload. However, Patil believes that resting important players in important series is not the best course of action.
“I wonder how the BCCI is agreeing to all this? Is the physio more important than the captain, than the head coach? What about selectors? Are we to expect that the physio will be sitting in selection committee meetings now? Will he decide?” Patil asked pointedly.
He insisted that anyone picked for the national team should be ready to push themselves to the limit, pointing to past cricketing greats who played through pain in service of the side.
“When you are picked for your country, you die for your country. You are a warrior. I have seen Sunil Gavaskar bat on all five days of a match, I have seen Kapil Dev bowl on most days of a Test match and even bowl to us in the nets. They never asked for breaks, never complained, and their careers extended to 16-plus years. I did not miss the next Test after my head injury in Australia in 1981,” he said.
While Patil conceded that players today have better facilities and medical care, he maintained that earlier generations were more prepared to put up with setbacks for the team.
“Modern-day players have all the facilities. We did not have such rehab programmes in our playing days. At times, we carried on playing despite injuries. Let us just say we were happy playing for the country no drama,” he remarked.
Even though he respects how batting has changed in the present era, Patil is certain that players should not skip games. “I marvel at the strokes batsmen play now. In our time we used to be scolded by Sunil Gavaskar if we tried any fancy strokes, but times have changed and we accept that. What I cannot digest is how players are missing games,” he concluded.
