Inside Team India’s injury crisis: Why Laxman is under scanner

With Team India’s injury list reading like a who’s who of the current roster and with a mathematically possible place in the World Test Championship final and the 2027 ODI World Cup up for grabs, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has gone into panic mode. 

Concerned by the growing list of injured players, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia was expected to meet BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) head VVS Laxman in Bengaluru to take stock of the rehabilitation and injury-management programme.

The CoE has come under intense scrutiny in recent weeks as several top players have suffered injuries, with questions being raised over rehabilitation timelines, fitness assessments and communication between the sports science team and the national selection committee.

The BCCI's concern is not simply the number of injuries but also whether the timelines communicated by the CoE have been consistent with the expectations of the selectors.

B Sai Sudharsan and Jasprit Bumrah were initially included in India's squad for the Sri Lanka Tests subject to fitness. However, the CoE's team of experts eventually decided to exercise caution after assessing their respective conditions.

There have also been reports of differences between the CoE and the selection committee over the fitness timelines of certain players and whether players have been released before completing all the necessary return-to-play protocols.

Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Laxman, however, said the CoE should not be viewed merely as a rehabilitation centre and stressed that its responsibilities extend to helping cricketers achieve excellence.

"CoE is not merely a rehab centre. There are bigger roles to play for it in helping cricketers achieve excellence," Laxman said.

He also refused to pin the blame on any individual or department for the spate of injuries, pointing out that injuries are an unavoidable part of a professional cricketer's career.

"Injuries are part and parcel of any player's career. That's why monitoring system is very critical. And we don't use the term blame then we will be trying to find scapegoats," Laxman said.

India are currently missing the services of Bumrah (knee swelling), Sudarshan (left big toe injury), Harshit Rana (hamstring), Nitish Kumar Reddy (hamstring) and Washington Sundar (quadriceps) due to various injuries. Akash Deep (lower back stress fracture) has been out for the longest time since Bengal's Ranji Trophy semi-final defeat.

White-ball specialists Hardik Pandya (quadriceps), Varun Chakravarthy (hamstring) and Prince Yadav (hamstring) are also at the Centre of Excellence for rehabilitation.

India batter Sarfaraz Khan is likely to replace injured Sudharsan in the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka, according to BCCI sources.

Meanwhile, Indian skipper Shubman Gill also sustained an injury to his right ring finger during a practice session ahead of the first Sri Lanka Test and only returned to practice on Sunday after a two-day rest.

The Sri Lanka series will form part of the ongoing ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle.

India are currently fifth in the World Test Championship standings, having registered four wins and four losses in nine matches, with a Points Percentage (PCT) of 48.150.