Courtesy: BCCI/Google
Kapil Dev, the former Indian ODI World Cup winning captain from 1983, spoke in an exclusive interview about the packed schedule for the players in the current day and age. The 66-year-old feels worried about the rising trend of injuries among Indian players because of them playing cricket 10 months in a year, and but at the same time, he also sympathised with them, stating that no player, including the main ones, wants to get injured.
Notably, in the build-up to the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which will be played in Pakistan and the UAE, the Indian cricket team will miss the services of their premier fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who has been ruled out of the tournament due to a back injury. Fortunately, for the Indian team management, the likes of Mohammed Shami and Kuldeep Yadav made their returns after injury layoffs in the recently concluded limited-overs series at home against England.
The only thing that worries me is that they play for 10 months a year: Kapil Dev
While speaking about the current state of Indian cricket and its players, Kapil Dev remarked, as per Indian Express, “The only thing that worries me is that they play for 10 months a year; injuries will be much more common.” When questioned about the absence of Jasprit Bumrah in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 squad, he responded, “Why talk about someone who is not in the team? It’s a team game, and the team has to win, not individuals.”
“This is not badminton, tennis, or golf; we are playing a team sport in the Champions Trophy. If we play as a team, we will definitely win,” he added. Kapil Dev also wished good luck to the Indian cricket team for their upcoming Champions Trophy campaign by saying, “You never want your main players to get injured, but if it happens, you can’t do anything about it. Good luck to my Indian team — go and play well.”
