"This trend of taking breaks has to end" - Reetinder Sodhi hits out at Team India management over frequent resting of players

Former cricketer Reetinder Sodhi has slammed Team India’s management over the move to rest players on a frequent basis in the name of workload management. Sodhi called for an end to this trend of cricketers taking breaks.

The Men in Blue went down to Bangladesh by five runs in Dhaka on Wednesday, December 7 in the second ODI of the three-match series. The defeat meant they conceded the series with a game in hand.

Earlier, Team India had lost the rain-marred one-day series in New Zealand 0-1. Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul were rested for the Kiwi tour. All-rounder Hardik Pandya led the team in the T20Is, but was not picked for the subsequent one-dayers.

Giving the example of Pandya, Sodhi claimed that players are losing their rhythm and form due to the constant musical chairs being played with spots in the team. Urging Team India’s think tank to shun such experiments, he told India News:

“Hardik Pandya was in great form. But after returning from a break, he struggled a bit with the bat and ball as well. After the IPL heroics, he also got to captain India, but Hardik Pandya’s graph has come down a bit since then. Players like Hardik have to play. This trend of taking breaks has to end.”

According to former India keeper-batter Saba Karim, the fitness of players, bowlers in particular, is another serious cause for concern. He stated during the same discussion:

“The frequency with which Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami are getting injured, the time has come for India to create a new pool of fast bowlers. We need to look beyond them as well. Same with spinners. Who will be our three top quality spinners in ODIs? Chahal, Axar, Sundar? If yes, then keep playing with them. The time to try out people is gone.”

India suffered a triple injury blow on Wednesday, with skipper Rohit as well as pacers Kuldeep Sen and Deepak Chahar being ruled out of the third ODI against Bangladesh.

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“Why have you taken Patidar and Tripathi to Bangladesh?” - Saba Karim questions Team India

Raising questions over Team India’s selection for the one-dayers in Bangladesh, Karim asked why the likes of Rajat Patidar and Rahul Tripathi were picked in the squad. He queried:

“Why have you taken Rajat Patidar and Rahul Tripathi to Bangladesh? What has Tripathi done in ODIs? He is a T20 specialist, but you have picked him in the one-day team. I don’t think he will play. The new selection committee and management must first decide the core team.”

The third match of the India-Bangladesh ODI series will be played in Chattogram on December 10.