Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises are not on the same page with BCCI’s proposed plan to send National Cricket Academy (NCA) physiotherapist Ashish Kaushik to the UAE during the marquee event, TOI reported on Sunday (August 9).
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The board wants Kaushik to track Team India’s cricketers, who are returning to action after a lengthy COVID-19 hiatus and are slated to fly to Australia immediately after the IPL.
As per the report, however, franchises don’t want any outsider, meaning those not part of the IPL teams’ bio-secure bubbles, to physically interact with players during the tournament.
“Franchises hire the best physios and trainers from around the world. The NCA guys can interact with players and franchises through video conferencing. There is also a trust deficit between the players and NCA,” those tracking developments quoted as saying by TOI.
Franchises are also unconvinced about NCA’s handling of players given some recent incidents.
“Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s hernia went undetected. Kedar Jadhav’s return was rushed. Wriddhiman Saha’s rehabilitation was ‘messed up’. Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah had their share of unpleasant experiences at the NCA. Who wants to take chances? The NCA has time and again proved incapable.”
The report further claims at least two franchises intend to convey the same to the IPL governing council when a meeting is held this coming week.
“Coordination will be an issue and we don’t want too many cooks spoiling the broth. Let’s have a proper system in place and follow it to the T,” say franchises.
The BCCI hasn’t disclosed much about NCA’s operation in recent months, except President Sourav Ganguly insisting that players should report to the academy after sustaining injury. The credibility of the institution has often been questioned and there is also the lack of trust.
“Franchises take care of their players throughout the year. The best facilities are being made available in UAE. Franchises have some of the best support staff. Take Delhi Capitals, for example. They brought Patrick Farhart on board as soon as he quit Team India. Kolkata Knight Riders’ Kamlesh Jain, who did his masters in sports therapy from London Met, has been the head physio at Cricket Association of Bengal. Chennai’s Tommy Simsek is someone who has MS Dhoni’s trust. Former Team India physio John Gloster is with Rajasthan Royals,” those in the know told TOI.
