The Indian Premier League is fast becoming the Injured Players’ League given the alarming rate at which participating cricketers are hurting themselves and their prospect of featuring in the Twenty20 World Championship this May.
Delhi Daredevils have lost captain Gautam Gambhir to a hamstring injury, Rajasthan Royals’ South African import Graeme Smith has flown back with a "double fracture" in his right-hand finger and India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni can’t play for Chennai Super Kings for at least the next 10 days due to an elbow problem.
English all-rounder Dimitri Mascarenhas, another Rajasthan Royals player, hurt his ankle and he too would miss the event from now on and how many more end up with niggles and injuries will be known only after the league draws to a close next month.
Players getting injured during a tournament is nothing new or unheard of but would be adding to the anxiety of their respective boards is the fact that the breakdowns are happening just a couple of months before the Twenty20 World Championship in the West Indies.
At a time when cricketers don’t really have an off season to look forward to, sustaining peak fitness is a huge challenge and only a few like Australian captain Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke have been able to turn their back on the lure of IPL’s fast cash and keep themselves fresh for international commitments.(PTI)
