Hurt of the matter

Munaf Patel is a habitual offender when it comes to breaking down. He has done it again and, to India’s dismay, he’s not the only one

MUMBAI: Just 10 days to go before the team leaves for a tough series and the selectors are scratching their heads, left wondering, still unsure which of their fast bowlers would be fit enough to carry the load across four Tests.

The Indian batsmen have been cocooned in the safety of the dead-as-dodo pitches on which the series against Pakistan is being played, and the pace and bounce of the Australian wickets could be a rude change. Add to this five injured frontline pacers — all of whom will miss the last Test in Bangalore — and Ricky Ponting & Co will relish indulging in mindgames.

Zaheer Khan’s heel injury has resurfaced; S Sreesanth’s shoulder is getting an ayurvedic rub-down (though it’s still unclear if he will go under the surgeon’s knife), while RP Singh is being troubled by a side strain. But the weirdest has been Munaf Patel, who reportedly hurt is back while sleeping in a funny position.

Munaf, who has only once lasted a full series — against the West Indies in 2006 — and has missed more cricket than he has played since making his debut. Ironically, he was asked to join the team when RP Singh and Sreesanth got injured before the Test series. Once again, he has lasted only two Tests. This, after he indignantly brushed aside talks about his suspect fitness during the Irani Trophy exactly two months back on this day.

“Munaf’s fitness is becoming a joke, and this is not the first time. We need to ensure that he will last a Test series, otherwise it will be embarrassing both for us as well as him. Munaf needs to understand that he is not helping himself or the team by playing only on and off,” a senior selector said.

During India’s away tour of South Africa last year, he played just one Test but never looked at his best. The Indian board wasn’t happy with Munaf’s attitude and his honesty with regard to accessing his own fitness came into question.

His recurring niggling injuries are hurting Indian cricket more than he probably realises. Since his debut, Munaf has played nine Tests but missed seven; played 25 ODIs but missed 19 - most of them due to fitness-related issues.

Former India medium-pacer Manoj Prabhakar is amused at the frequency at which the current lot, especially Munaf, is getting injured. “An Australian tour is very taxing for a fast bowler. During the 1991 tour, Kapil Dev and I bowled right through all four months and stayed injury-free. But I doubt whether any of the present lot will be able to last a full tour. A mounting injury list maybe coincidental, but it is definitely not good news as having four fit medium-pacers are a must for India to succeed Down Under,” the Delhi bowling coach said.

Prabhakar wonders whether weight training and inadequate rehabilitation practices are what is working against the Indian bowlers. “I think bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad and the support staff have to have a re-look at their training methods. The injuries are occurring far too often,” he added.

MRF Pace Foundation’s head coach TA Sekhar points out that 90 percent of injuries to fast bowlers occur when faulty technique comes into play. “I predicted that RP Singh was going to get injured. His bowling technique changed between the World T20 and the Australia series. When a batsman is not scoring runs people talk about faults in his technique. Why doesn’t anyone acknowledge technique when it comes to bowlers?” Sekhar asked.

“It’s high time the technique of Indian bowlers are monitored on a regular basis and Venkatesh Prasad (bowling coach) won’t be able to do that as he is busy preparing them to bowl in match conditions day in and day out. Sreesanth has already been ruled out. If RP Singh doesn’t recover fully, and Zaheer and Munaf don’t bowl at full pace, then India will have a tough time in Australia,” Sekhar warned.