'They’ll get a resident permit at NCA' - Ravi Shastri rips apart India pacers for constant injury struggles

Former India cricketer Ravi Shastri feels annoyed and frustrated with recurring injuries to Indian pacers and questions the use of the National Cricket Academy. Shastri was talking ahead of Chennai Super Kings' upcoming  IPL game against Rajasthan Royals on Wednesday, April 12 and was stretching out on Deepak Chahar's recent injury issue.

Chennai Super Kings enter the game without Deepak and Ben Stokes as they face a few injury issues. Deepak suffered another hamstring injury as he walked off the pitch after bowling just one over against Mumbai Indians. Stokes and Moeen Ali missed the Mumbai game as well, but the latter is expected to return for the upcoming game.

Apart from Deepak, a few Indian pacers have struggled with different injuries over the last few months, and many, including Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, and Mohsin Khan, are missing the IPL 2023. It's not limited to Indian pacers, as many overseas pacers are also sidelined with different injury issues this season.

The former Indian head coach also questioned players' fitness and said that they can't play just a few games and go back to National Cricket Academy (NCA).

"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.

"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. So 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, and the captains of the various [IPL] franchises. It's annoying, to say the least," Shastri said while speaking on the ESPNCricinfo show.

Some of them don't play any other cricket in the year: Ravi Shastri

Shastri also added that he is clueless about players lasting only for a few games before suffering an injury. He pointed out that some are only playing IPL, where they have to bowl just four overs and play for three hours but still get injured.

"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 added.