'Indian players should skip IPL if they feel burnt out' - Kapil Dev

India is currently on a tour to New Zealand that is moving in its fag end. The visitors are scheduled to play the final game of the two-match Test series on 29th of February in Christchurch. Soon after returning from New Zealand, the Indian players will get indulged in the preparations of Indian Premier League that is slated to begin from 29th of March.

Virat Kohli and Co. have already played a T20I series against Sri Lanka and ODI series against Australia followed by their long tour to New Zealand where they featured in five T20Is, three ODIs and one Test with one game left. The first couple of months have turned out to be quite hectic from the perspective of Team India.

Kapil Dev has a piece of advice for Indian cricketers

After that, the players will get involved in the preparations of IPL with their respective teams. In this long tournament, each franchise is scheduled to play at least 14 games. It will be a tough task ahead for the players to maintain their form for so long in competitive cricket. And, earlier, many former cricketers had openly said that if the players are finding it difficult to cope up with such hectic calendar then they can skip IPL to take some rest.

In an interview, Kapil Dev, the former Indian skipper said that if players are feeling down or workload is more then they can rule themselves out from the cash-rich league. There is always a difference between playing for the national side and franchise. A player donning the national jersey should always be fit and fresh in order to give his best on the field.

He also shared his experience and added that he used to take rest when he felt burdened or burned out during his illustrious career. During a series, a player keeps on playing regularly but what matters is his on-field performances. If he manages to perform well then a player never feels burned out. But, if that is not the case then they go through some serious mental tensions. And, nothing can be done over the same as the brain of human beings always work in the same way.

“If you think there is burnout then don’t play IPL. There you are not representing your country. So if you think you are burned out, you can always take a break during the IPL. When you are representing your country, the feeling should be different. So many times, yes,” said the former all-rounder when asked if he felt burned out during his illustrious career.

“When you come into a series and you keep on playing, you burn out when you are not getting runs or wickets. But when you do, you never burn out. You take seven wickets and bowl 20-30 overs a day, you don’t feel tired. You bowl 10 overs and give away 80 runs and don’t pick a wicket you feel more tired. It’s a very emotional thing. Your mind, your brain works like that. Performances make you very light and happy,” Kapil Dev said as quoted by Times of India.

Team India will now lock horns with BlackCaps on 29th of February in Christchurch in second Test of the series.

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