MUMBAI: The Twenty20 cricket, during its evolution in the last one year as much as a hit parade as a huge money-spinner, has however exploded a popular myth that it is format made for the younger lot.
The two editions of the IPL showed out the veterans and even the retired players like Mathew Hayden, Andrew Gilchrist and Anil Kumble, amongst others, as twinkling stars and ever so fit for the fray.
Now, let us look at the national teams of various countries playing in the Twenty20 World Cup in England. Their average age is not much different from what their outfits would be for the other versions of the game. With the average age of at around 26, India boasts of the youngest squad. The average of the other teams is between 27 and 30.
The main reason for the Indian team’s younger look is a conscious policy enforced to have a young captain and as many young players as possible in the squads for the limited versions of the game. Thus, the appointment of Dhoni and the exclusion of Tendulkar, Dravid and Laxman, brought in a whiff of fresh air in the non-Test teams of India. With the exception of Pakistan, the others are a bit slow in going for a policy of rejuvenation. The continued success of senior players, including that of Sanath Jaisuriya of Sri Lanka at 39, may slow down the process further.
Be that as it may, there is no denying the fact that the hectic nature of play in the shortest version of the game does put a strain on the players, young and old. The risk of injury too is greater and the time for recovery hardly any. The principle to follow therefore is to play for preservation and remain injury-free. In the IPL, however, this did not work, especially with the younger players.
There are several players who are now carrying injuries from the IPL into the World Cup, the most prominent being India’s Zaheer Khan and Virendra Sehwag and England’s star all-rounder Andrew Flintoff. Of all the teams, Pakistan may be perhaps be the team with fresh legs and with the tag of being the fittest. Since they have not had any serious international cricket from March, the players will be just raring to go.
The biggest worry must be dogging the footsteps of the Australian squad. They already have some injury problems and will be nursing their star bowler Brett Lee very carefully as he has just returned to full action after a long lay-off due to injury. There are many players in the Twenty20 squad who will be featuring in the important “Ashes” series, which starts soon after the World Cup. Skipper Ponting has a sore wrist and is going to play sparingly before he plunges headlong into the “Ashes” battle.
How careful can a player be? Once you are in the heat of the action and fighting for the sake of the team, there cannot be any considerations of caution. Having said that, there is no discounting the fact that after every match, most players are going to heave a huge sigh of relief “Thank God, it is only a 40-over game.”
