NEW DELHI: Former India head coach Ravi Shastri minced no words in showing his displeasure at the recurring injuries to country’s top players and called them as ‘permanent residents’ of the National Cricket Academy (NCA).
The BCCI-run NCA in Bengaluru has a dedicated sports science and medical team that helps the centrally-contracted cricketers in getting treatment for their injuries.
“Let’s put it this way: there are quite a few in the last three or four years who are permanent residents of the NCA. Soon, they’ll get a resident permit there to walk in any time they want, which is not a good thing at all. It’s unreal,” Shastri said sarcastically on ESPN Cricinfo’s digital video.
Shastri, who was India’s head coach as recently as October, 2021, is surprised that some of these bowlers don’t even play all formats but are yet not fit enough to bowl four overs across four T20 games on the trot.

“Come on, you’re not playing that much cricket to be injured again and again. I mean, you can’t play four matches on the trot. What are you going to the NCA for? If you are going to come back and then three matches (later) you’re back there (NCA),” he said.
Shastri urged the players going for rehabilitation to at least try to be fit enough so that no one is wasting their time and money.
“So, you make sure you get fit and come once and for all because it’s damn frustrating. Not just for the team, the players, the BCCI, the captains of the various [IPL] franchises. It’s annoying, to say the least.”

“I can understand a serious injury, but every four games when someone touches his hamstring or someone touches his groin, you start thinking what are these guys… what are they training, what’s going on? And some of them don’t play any other cricket in the year. It’s just four overs [in the IPL], man, three hours. The game is over,” Shastri said.
(With inputs from PTI)