“You call yourself the fittest team in the world?” - Sunil Gavaskar rips apart Team India seniors over workload complaints 

India batting great Sunil Gavaskar has hit out at the team’s current senior players for expressing concerns over workload issues. Questioning their fitness, he wondered how players are breaking down so often despite playing T20 games most of the time due to the demand of the modern era.

Team India have been constantly rotating their senior players over the last couple of years. Yet, a number of their key players are on the injury list. Lead pacer Jasprit Bumrah hasn’t played a game for India since September 2022. Batters KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer, among a few others, are also out of action.

Slamming senior Indian cricketers for their reluctance to go early to prepare for big events, Gavaskar said that they have the convenient excuse of excessive workload.

Speaking at The Indian Express Idea Exchange, the Indian legend did not mince his words. Without taking any names, he was scathing in his criticism of senior members of the national team.

He commented:

“The truth is the main guys do not want to go early [to prepare for big events]. Because they know that come what may, they will get selected. And when you go early they will talk about the workload. You call yourself the fittest team in the world or fitter than the early generations, then how do you break down so soon? How do you have a workload issue when you play a 20-over game?”

Most of the Indian players featured in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, which ended on May 29. India played the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia from June 7 to 11.

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“So what is this talk about 20-25 days?” - Gavaskar rubbishes lack of preparation theory for WTC loss

Following India’s loss in the WTC 2023 final, skipper Rohit Sharma opined that a 20-day preparation period would have been ideal for the mega event. Gavaskar, however, trashed the argument.

Referring to how Indian players are spending their time in West Indies ahead of the Test series, he commented:

“What kind of preparation are we talking about? Now they have gone to the West Indies. You have the example of the World Test Championship before you. Are you playing any matches? So what is this talk about 20-25 days?"

Gavaskar added:

"When you talk about preparation, be genuine about it. Go 15 days before, play two warm-up matches. The main guys can rest, but the fringe players might be actually challenging those who are not doing well. He does not get an opportunity to show that he is good enough."

India’s tour of the West Indies will begin with the first Test in Dominica from July 12 onwards.