 Most people are of the opinion that to say the schedule of the Indian cricket
team is hectic would be stating the very obvious and an understatement actually.
This story was in fact supported yesterday by the statements of national coach
Gary Kirsten when he said that 'mental fatigue' would be a real challenge
for his team. The MS Dhoni led-side has been on the road almost non-stop since
the tour of New Zealand and importantly each of the 15 members chosen for the
ICC T20 World Cup is participating in the ongoing IPL. The side
would return home for a brief period after the tournament but will have to get
ready to play their 1st warm-up game (for the World Cup) against New Zealand
on 1st June in England. India's 1st game of the showpiece event kicks
off on the 6th June at Trent Bridge against Bangladesh.
However, despite voicing his concerns over the fatigue factor, the coach did sound
confident enough in his boys. He said that they've become a tight unit over the
past few months and that they take enormous pride in playing for their country.
He admitted that being the defending champions meant that the team will be under
pressure but went onto add that expectations go with the territory of high-performance
teams. The skipper MS Dhoni too got a thumbs-up from the coach who said that though
John Buchanan's theory of 'multiple captains' may have some merits, the Indian
team need not think of anyone else to lead them. Dhoni, in Kirsten's words was
'a highly effective and capable leader for India' and further added that the leadership
would not change hands for some time to come.
Elsewhere, despite being ruled out of the IPL by their medical staff, Shane
Watson, James Hopes and Nathan Bracken will not contest their
Board's move. The three cricketers who were keen to participate in the final
fortnight of the lucrative IPL, said that they understood the reasoning behind
the move and if the rest meant that they'd be better prepared for T20 World
Cup and more importantly for the Ashes, they were more than happy. Bracken and
Hopes would the major losers as far as the dollars are concerned as they were
to earn in excess of $100,000 in pro-rata payments for their 2 week duty in
the final phase of the IPL.
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