It has been almost a decade now that India has not lifted an ICC Trophy with the last one coming in 2013 when MS Dhoni ushered the Men in Blue to the ICC Champions Trophy after a miracle in the last three overs. Since then, India has thoroughly dictated the ICC tournaments only to come a cropper in the dying embers of the tournament every time.
With all said and done, India still has three ICC events until 2024 where they will be playing in the WTC finale in Oval in June 2023, the World Cup later in this year followed by the T20 World Cup in 2024. With so many events on the horizon, former Indian batter, Sunil Gavaskar has made it crystal clear that if the Indian players are not mending ways in the biggest of occasions, things may turn out for the worse.
Here is what Sunil Gavaskar had to say about India’s preparations in the World Cup year
In his column for Mid Day, Sunil Gavaskar wrote, “In a World Cup year any match missed means preparation gets hampered as the balance of the team gets affected. Another failure to win a World Cup will have repercussions that could possibly end a few international careers and that should be a red flag for those talking burnout and missing games for India.”
Going back to his earlier comment about workloads, Gavaskar said, “I honestly feel that the BCCI needs to look into this concept of rest. All the Grade A cricketers have received very good contracts. They receive payment for every match. Tell me if there is any company whose CEO, or MDs get so much time off? I feel that if Indian cricket is to become more professional, a line needs to be drawn. If you want to be rested, you need to reduce your guarantees. Then you take rest, because you don’t want to play. But how can anyone say that I don’t want to play for the Indian team. Which is why I do not agree to the concept.”
India can have a major challenge if they do not sort out their medical issues
India will need to sort their issues, particularly with injuries that have been the biggest trouble-maker in recent times for the Men in Blue. With so many players on the bench now, India will need their full strength before they hit the hallowed yards.
