The head of the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru, VVS Laxman, has defended the CoE and its processes amid the criticism it has faced following the absence of Jasprit Bumrah and Sai Sudharsan for the upcoming Test series in Sri Lanka.
Sudharsan is the latest casualty in the Indian cricket team, as the left-handed batsman has been ruled out of the two-Test rubber against Sri Lanka due to a toe stress fracture.
Jasprit Bumrah was earlier ruled out owing to a knee injury, while Washington Sundar will miss the first Test as he recovers from a hamstring injury. That makes it three first-choice players not available for India.
Harshit Rana, Akash Deep, and Nitish Kumar Reddy, three likely candidates for a place in the squad, are all laid low because of respective injuries.
This has raised scrutiny over the Centre of Excellence, whose in charge is Laxman. The former India batsman fronted up to the media on Sunday to respond to the questions over the CoE’s working and procedures and communication with the selectors and team management.
“The process is that the selector reaches out to the COE asking for the fitness status report. And we collect the current status and send a fitness status report to the selection committee chairman or chairperson in women’s selection committee with a copy to obviously the head coach of both the teams and the BCCI,” Laxman said.
Always it’s player-centric and team-centric: Laxman on Jasprit Bumrah and Sai Sudarshan Injury Management
Laxman recalled that both Bumrah’s and Sudharshan’s names in the BCCI’s squad announcement for the Sri Lanka tour mentioned their participation being conditional to fitness clearance. He explained that the CoE’s decision-making is a layered structure and is taken considering the players’ long-term fitness, adding that both cricketers were deemed not fit enough to play in the IND vs SL Test series.
“Now, Bumrah and Sudarshan. You know, there’s always an asterisk, and this is one thing which you all will know that when the media release comes from the BCCI, there’s an asterisk attached to a player’s selection. And what does that asterisk mean? It means subject to fitness. So, Bumrah and Sai Sudarshan were going to be picked for Sri Lanka subject to fitness clearance.
“And as I told before, you know, you assess them, you move them from one stage to the next stage, and if the progression is slow, you communicate to the selection committee chairman and the head coach which is happening seamlessly.
“And they [players] understand that they’re not yet ready to participate in the national series. Always it’s player-centric and team-centric. So that communication is happening seamlessly,” Laxman explained.
IND vs SL: Who is Sai Sudharsan’s replacement for the Sri Lanka Test series?
The BCCI has not yet named a replacement for Sudharsan but is expected to do so in the coming days. The replacement, though, is unlikely to play in the 1st Test in Galle, which starts on August 15. Devdutt Padikkal, who hit a century in the warm-up game, is set to bat at No. 3.
Get the Latest Cricket Updates at IceCric.News. Also, Follow Our Social Media for live updates on Facebook and Instagram.
