Indian chief selector MSK Prasad reveals the workload will be balanced keeping Australia tour in mind

Despite a strong start to the England series, it was yet another story of missed opportunities as India succumbed against the Three Lions, failing to cross the line marginally. On the long tour, they won only the T20I series 2-1, lost the ODIs 1-2 and the Test series 1-4. The thrashing at the hands of England has left the world’s No.1 Test team licking its wounds. The tour will thus be a major learning curve for the young team with the Australian challenge scheduled at the end of the year.

Also with players being exposed to an array of fixtures, it will be of utmost importance to ensure they have adequate time to rest to avoid injury and other concerns. Abiding by it, the BCCI has thus decided to rest a few players ahead of the all-important Australia tour. The board has an established workload management programme, and the improved fitness standards amongst the Indian cricketers serve as a testament to that.

In a chat with TOI, chief selector MSK Prasad elaborated the way forward. “As part of this injury prevention process and workload management process, we have rested Virat Kohli for the Asia Cup and also intend to rest a few more players in the upcoming home series before the Australia tour.”

Youngsters will get a chance

They’ve given quite a few players a long rope with the team but the results just haven’t come by. As a result, the sword seems to be hanging on the openers especially Shikhar Dhawan who has been below average on overseas tours. When asked about that Prasad said, ”After giving enough opportunities, if the players don’t deliver then in all fairness we need to look at youngsters who are doing well on the domestic cricket circuit and for India ‘A’.”

Windies-Australia-New Zealand

Team India will play Windies at home in a series comprising of 2 Tests, 5 ODIs and 3 T20Is in October-November this year. Given the fact that the visiting side isn’t the strongest of oppositions and the huge tour of Australia that will closely follow, the players who’ve played non-stop cricket this year will be rested. This will also prove to be a huge opportunity for the youngsters that have been in the reckoning for a while as they would be hoping to make an impression ahead of the Australia tour.

Down under the Indian team will take on the home team in 3 T20Is followed by 4 Tests and conclude the tour with a 3-match ODI series. The tour starts on November 21 with the first T20I and will conclude with the final ODI on January 18. Immediately after that the Men in Blue will fly to neighbouring New Zealand to play 5 ODIs and 3 T20Is in Jan-Feb 2019.

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