IPL The final will conclude on May 31, with a brief six-day break before the Afghanistan Test begins on June 6 at the Mullanpur Stadium. After this five-day match, India will play three ODIs against Afghanistan, followed by a tour of Ireland, England and Zimbabwe in July.
India may rest Shubman Gill and Jasprit Bumrah for the one-off Afghanistan Test
According to a report by The Times of IndiaThe minimal gap between the IPL final and the Afghanistan Test has raised concerns over players’ workload management.
With three ODIs and a white-ball tour of England scheduled immediately thereafter, the management’s focus is on avoiding fatigue. The report also notes that the Afghanistan Test does not carry WTC points, making it important to manage players carefully amid a long and demanding calendar.
“There is not much difference between the IPL final and the Afghanistan Test, so the selectors and management will be careful not to waste players as there are three ODIs and then a white-ball series in England,” TimesofIndia.com quoted a source as saying.
“There are no WTC points in the Afghanistan Test, and stakeholders need to manage the workload carefully as some players will be on the road for about two months and have to play a lot of cricket in the rest of the year,” the source said.
IPL playoff results will impact rest demands for Shubman Gill and Jasprit Bumrah
The report adds that the rest strategy will depend on how Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians perform in the IPL playoffs. There are concerns about players changing formats with limited time between Test and ODI series.
“And there is very little turnaround time between Test and ODI series. So you will again be in a situation where a Test and ODI regular – like Gill, Bumrah, KL Rahul and even Ravindra Jadeja – will change the format from T20 to Test to ODI in less than a month. The captain and the coach have been very vocal about such schedules in the past and can take the final decision,” says the source.
According to a report by The Times of IndiaThe selectors are keeping a close eye on the domestic performers, with Manav Suthar and Gurnoor Brar emerging as strong contenders after impressive recent performances.
Young players in controversy as workload management comes into focus
The report also states that players like Harsh Dubey, Auqib Nabi and Devdutt Padikkal remain in the selection mix, while Nitish Kumar Reddy’s improvement with the ball has also kept him in contention.
“One thing is clear with this selection panel: they rarely jump the gun. It is no secret that Gurnoor and Manav have been very impressive, as have Harsh, Auqib and Devdutt. It will all depend on the discussion between the thinktank and the medical team as optimal use of resources will be key here. There is no point in keeping your star players out in the sun for a five-day match that does not offer any WTC points.”
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