Sport

Stars advised rehabilitation programme

Mumbai: The long tour of Australia seems to have taken a heavy toll as India’s star cricketers are stricken with assorted injuries.

The availability of Yuvraj Singh, Ishant Sharma, Sachin Tendulkar and Harbhajan Singh for the first Test against South Africa in Chennai is in doubt. Yuvraj (in the event of a relapse of subluxation) and Harbhajan (inability to bowl) may have to undergo surgery.

The Indian cricket team’s physiotherapist John Gloster’s final report on some of the leading Indian cricketers is not scary; nonetheless it’s a stark revelation of how a long tour can weaken the limbs and cause damage if timely and proper precautions are not taken and if the cricketers fail to adhere to the rehabilitation procedure advised them.

Gloster has advised each one of them to adhere to a specific rehabilitation programme for two or three weeks.

Gloster, who has not sought further employment with the BCCI, has identified seven cricketers — Yuvraj, Tendulkar, Irfan Pathan, Ishant, Harbhajan, Sreesanth and Mahendra Singh Dhoni — and highlighted specific injuries these cricketers suffered in the course of the Australian tour.

Gloster has sent the final Australia tour report to the officials of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Gary Kirsten (coach), Gregory King (physical trainer), Dhoni (one day captain), Venkatesh Prasad (bowling coach), Robin Singh (fielding coach) and Dilip Vengsarkar (chairman of the selection committee). His weekly injury report also points out minor ailments to Robin Uthappa (right elbow strain), Gautam Gambhir (bruised knee), Virender Sehwag (bruised left hand) and Munaf Patel (food poisoning) in the course of the Commonwealth Bank Tri-series.

Those who do not figure in his report are Anil Kumble, Wasim Jaffer, V.V.S. Laxman, Pankaj Singh, V.R.V. Singh, Suresh Raina, Piyush Chawla, Rohit Sharma, Praveen Kumar and Dinesh Karthik.

Gloster has advised Ishant to take a complete break from bowling for two to three weeks and avoid running and has said that no compromise should be made on this count.

As regards the acute tendon sheath inflammation on the right forefinger, he has to continue with anti-inflammatory techniques until resolved.

Yuvraj has been told to follow strengthening and stability exercises programme without high impact activity, to take a break from cricket and excessive loaded activities for a minimum period of two weeks (ideally three weeks), undergo x-training (swimming, cycling and water running) and advised maintenance of stability programme, balance exercises and gluteal retraining.

Harbhajan Singh: Left hamstring tendon (enthesopathy): requires minimum two weeks rest from bowling and running post tour, to avoid long distance running, running on inclines etc, continue with deep Tr Friction Rx to area, hamstring release STM, neural stretches, etc, to continue to monitor condition.

Once this condition starts to impede his ability to bowl then surgical intervention will have to be considered (report of Dr. David Young).

Sachin Tendulkar: Right adductor tendonosis (enthesopathy) with deep hip flexor involvement: requires minimum two weeks rest from aggravating (pain inducing) activities, must not allow this condition to settle into ‘chronic phase’ otherwise may take further two weeks to control, once pain settles then commencement of deep release massage therapy to region, flexibility for right hip region, including adductors and flexors, once pain free then recommence basic strength training to adductors initially in water then with band resistance

Irfan Pathan: Requires minimum two weeks break from competitive cricket to concentrate on conditioning, main focus areas to be lower back, sides and shoulder strength/stability.

S. Sreesanth: Left ankle instability: emphasis on continual strength/stability and proprioceptive rehabilitation of left ankle as well as ongoing glut med strengthening.

Right shoulder and scapular stability maintenance programme: requires cortisone injection into right DIP forefinger.

Now sensitive and requires some form of intervention to alleviate sensitivity from recent knocks

M.S. Dhoni: Right hand fourth finger DIP severe sprain. Will need to be X-rayed.

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