Indian board official reckons Ishant's injury in NZ has put NCA in spotlight; wants academy chief to look into the way injury rehabilitation is handled
India pacer Ishant Sharma prepares to bowl during Day 2 of the first Test against NZ at Basin Reserve in Wellington recently. Pic/Getty Images
If the handling of Wriddhiman Saha and Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the past wasn't bad enough, Ishant Sharma breaking down after the first Test against New Zealand has once again raised eyebrows on the process followed at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) when it comes to injury management and rehabilitation. And BCCI officials feel that as NCA head, Rahul Dravid must take responsibility of all actions in and around the academy.
Speaking to IANS, a BCCI official said that the injury to Ishant once again brought to fore the questions raised by Indian players in the past over the way things are managed at the academy and how, as a leader, Dravid must stand up and put a stop to this.
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Decisions under scrutiny
"It would be interesting to see what are the changes in the scan reports when he was declared fit and the ones taken now. Look, Dravid is one of the most respected players we have but administration is objective and ruthless. While one would think it blasphemous to be critical of his coaching or mentoring decisions, the decisions relating to administration will definitely be scrutinised and criticised, especially when they concern the handling of one of our most precious assets that is Ishant.
"Since Rahul is apparently the primary decision maker at the NCA, it would therefore only be natural that he should take responsibility for the processes and decisions," the official said. The official further questioned the backing given to head physio Ashish Kaushik despite his repeated failures. "Given the magnitude of backing that Dravid has lent to Kaushik, it is time for him to stand up and take responsibility for the blunders at the NCA. Maybe it would be better to hire an objective and neutral person as a physio," he explained.
Rahul Dravid
A BCCI functionary pointed at how the whole Ishant episode once again showed that the NCA refusing to test Jasprit Bumrah's fitness since he had undergone rehabilitation away from the academy means nothing as the pacer clearly came back fully fit, unlike Ishant.
Shocking results
"Does the fitness test really mean anything anymore? Bumrah wasn't administered a fitness test and has been playing without any problems and Ishant, who had been cleared, is injured again. I find it somewhat shocking that the NCA did not conduct a fitness test of Bumrah and this raises the larger question as to whether or not a fitness test is mandatory for someone returning from injury," the functionary pointed.
"Ishant complained of ankle pain soon after bowling a few deliveries as part of his warm-up routine on Friday, during India's optional training session at the Hagley Oval. The BCCI medico assessed him on the spot and he was taken for scans soon after. Once the scan results arrived later in the evening, Ishant was deemed unfit to take part in the second Test," the BCCI release had said on Saturday morning.
The pacer had suffered a Grade 3 tear on his right ankle while playing for Delhi in their Ranji Trophy encounter against Vidarbha at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
A day after the reports came in, the Delhi and District Cricket Association had clearly said that the pacer was all but out of the Test series against New Zealand ashe had been asked to rest his leg for six weeks.
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