VVS Laxman has explained how the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) is managing Nitish Kumar Reddy’s recurring injury concerns, stressing the importance of workload management for the India all-rounder.
Laxman said Nitish’s role as an all-rounder means he faces a significant physical workload. The CoE is therefore working with him to improve his fitness and help him manage the demands of playing across different formats and tournaments.
Nitish recently suffered a left quadriceps injury, which ruled him out of India’s T20I squads for the series against Ireland, England and Zimbabwe.
Laxman: Injuries are part of sport
Speaking about Nitish’s rehabilitation, Laxman said the mental side of dealing with injuries is also important.
He explained that players undergoing rehabilitation need to understand their recovery plans and know what they can do to return to competition safely.
For Nitish, Laxman said the focus is not only on recovering from his latest injury but also on becoming fitter and better equipped to handle the workload associated with being an all-rounder.
“In this case, it is Nitish being an all-rounder obviously, there is a lot of workload on him,” Laxman said.
He added that workload management is a broader concern and is not limited to one player.
India dealing with several injury concerns
Nitish is among several India players currently dealing with fitness issues.
Jasprit Bumrah, Sai Sudharsan, Harshit Rana and Washington Sundar have also faced fitness or injury concerns, adding to the importance of the CoE’s rehabilitation and injury-management programme.
BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia met Laxman on Sunday to review the programme at the Centre of Excellence. BCCI president Mithun Manhas and other senior officials also attended the meeting.
Why workload management has become important
Laxman pointed out that modern cricketers have limited opportunities to take extended breaks from competitive cricket.
Players move between the IPL, state-level competitions, domestic cricket and international assignments. As a result, they need to use available breaks effectively to maintain and improve their fitness.
He said players must learn how to manage their bodies even while playing matches because the traditional concept of a long off-season has changed.
New Bronco test introduced at BCCI CoE
Laxman also spoke about the fitness testing conducted before the start of the season.
Contracted and targeted players undergo a series of fitness assessments based on the National Fitness Testing Criteria (NFTC).
A new Bronco test, introduced by India’s strength and conditioning coach Adrian Le Roux, has also been added to the programme.
According to Laxman, the test can be used during the season because it functions partly as a conditioning session while also assessing aspects of a player’s fitness.
Why the Yo-Yo test is not used during a series
Laxman explained that the Yo-Yo test is not suitable during an ongoing series because of the physical demands involved and the recovery time required.
He said the Bronco test can instead be repeated during the season and can provide useful information about players’ conditioning levels without imposing the same recovery demands.
India looks to manage fitness ahead of busy schedule
With India facing a packed international calendar, managing player fitness will remain a major priority.
For all-rounders such as Nitish, balancing batting, bowling, training and match commitments can be particularly demanding.
Laxman’s comments underline the CoE’s focus on preventing recurring injuries, improving conditioning and helping players manage workloads more effectively.
