Amid the growing debate of the workload management of Indian players during this season's IPL, captain Virat Kohli has effectively pulled the plug on the issue by saying that no instructions have been issued to cap the number of games a player would take part in. He also emphasised that the responsibility for managing workloads lay with the players themselves and that they have to be smart at all times.
"You cannot put a cap on anything. If I'm able to play 10, 12 or 15 games, it doesn't necessarily mean that the other guy can only play that many. My body might demand I play a certain number of games and I need to be smart about that and rest," Kohli said in Bengaluru.
"Someone else's body might be more capable than mine or less, that is a very individual thing. And everyone wants to play the World Cup, so people will be smart about it because you don't want to miss out on such a big event," he further added.
All players will be responsible during IPL
He also said that the players themselves need to monitor their workloads during the IPL, but at the same time use the IPL as a stepping stone towards the World Cup.
"From a responsibility point of view, all the Indian players will have the responsibility during the IPL to keep a watch on their fitness and their workloads," he said.
"And to continue the frame of mind we have created in the Indian team - strive towards excellence and improve every day. Each player will take this tournament as an opportunity to go to the World Cup in a good frame of mind," Kohli added.
Former Indian pacer and currently the bowling coach of RCB, Ashish Nehra said that since the IPL is a high-pressure tournament, players want to take part and perform in order to be in tune with their game. He also believed taking an extended break before the World Cup can be counterproductive and that players need to understand their own body and game better to be successful.
Coach Gary Kirsten, who knows a thing or two about winning World Cups agreed with the point made by Nehra had said that the Indian players should view the IPL as preparation for the World Cup.
"And Ashish has made a good point: if you get yourself match-ready during the IPL, that's going to hold you in really good stead during the World Cup. I think it's an advantage to the Indian players, actually. Because the IPL is such a pressurised tournament, it's great preparation for the World Cup," Kirsten said.
