There was once a time when cricket games were only played in the cold and refreshing winters. It was seen as the best season to play owing to the tropical conditions of some cricket playing nations.
Yet, in the past decade, there has been a substantial increase in the number of cricket games and cricket tournaments that are played. This has not only caused a lot of cricket schedulesscheduling issues but has also rendered the players injured and exhausted.
This phenomenon of hectic cricket schedules once again in full display in 2019. 2019 saw IPL cricket games kick off as early as 25th March to accommodate both the general elections in India and the upcoming World Cup. But what really affected the players was the haste at which it started.
Both India and Australia had just finished an ODI series in March, and without much break had to jump straight into the IPL cricket games foray. It was the same for other players from teams like South Africa and Afghanistan, who were also engaged in international cricket tours with other countries.
Initially, when IPL cricket games had started it did cause a furore since many players started losing out on the league due to international tours clashing on the same dates. The issue was resolved by the ICC when the Indian Premier League was given their own window. Yet, this has certainly now solved the problem have tight scheduling which leads to player fatigue.
This year’s cricket schedules especially came under the radar, when it was seen that the World Cup is starting just two weeks after the IPL 2019 finale. This is certainly not enough time for the players to set their camps, recover from an already tenuous tournament and then jump into a new one.
This issue occurred last year too when Indian skipper Virat Kohli has to miss two important multilateral tournaments because of the hectic scheduling. Even though he rested in those two tours, he still had a stiff back while India was playing a Test Series in England, this also made him skip an important tournament like the Asia Cup. This is a prime example of what happens when a player is stretched beyond his limits.
This phenomenon was also displayed by former Indian cricket team captain MS Dhoni, in midst of IPL 2019. He was pictured taking a nap in between flights on the floor of the airport. The hectic schedule of going to and fro in between different cities for IPL cricket games extremely tiring.
With World Cup around the corner, this kind of strain is something that no team should subject their player to. IPL also takes a lot from the players because of contestant travelling, rigorous training, matches ending at midnight, the scorching heat, events and press conferences. This is further amplified with the serval advertisements that these cricket players have to shoot in order to market their team sponsors.
The problem in scheduling is not just in cricket games. Players engaged in different sports have complained about the strain that such hectic cricket schedules put on them. While football leagues are much more hectic, there is a good balance between the international and domestic matches, which the cricket board is yet to find. But, one of the most strenuous sport is that of tennis. Top players like Nadal have talked about the hectic scheduling and how negatively it affects their bodies.
While everyone enjoys watching cricket especially a tournament like IPL, what IPL 2019 could have done, owing to the fact that this is the World Cup year, is that reduced the number of matches. IPL could have taken inspiration for leagues like BBL (Australia), BPL (Bangladesh) or PSL (Pakistan), which are great successes even though they have lesser matches.
Read More : How Our World Cup Squad Fared In IPL 2019
IPL could perhaps take a note from BBL (Australia), BPL (Bangladesh) or PSL (Pakistan). Even with a fewer number of matches, these leagues are hugely successful looking at the audience they are targeting.
This is not the first time that IPL cricket games are taking place in a World Cup Year. It has happened before in 2015 and 2011. But the stark differences among the previous two times and this time is that the IPL editions took place after the World Cup. However, this time around IPL 2019 is taking place before the World Cup which will take place in England.
Talking of previous IPLs that followed the World Cup, most of those tournaments did not suffer as IPL is mentally less strenuous than representing your country at a World Cup. Even a few players missed the IPL after a hectic World Cup did not make a big deal due to the abundance of resources. But any major player missing any part of the World Cup after a hectic IPL can affect the fortunes of a nation.
MS Dhoni himself had to take rest from two CSK matches due to a minor injury. With so many players protesting and talking about the hectic cricket schedules of matches, it is important that both the BCCI and the ICC say heed to these pleas. It affects the health of the players and in turn, affects the chances of the nation if key players started getting injured or too exhausted to perform in big tournaments like the World Cup.
Originally published at Sporcial.
