‘Indian national team is not Indian cricket’: Sunil Gavaskar’s powerful message to BCCI and ICC

Sunil Gavaskar has warned of the unrelenting demands placed on India’s cricketers and called for a rethink of the busy international calendar and greater emphasis on the domestic game.The former India captain warned against sending players from one series or tournament to another without giving them enough time to recover. His comments, reported in his Sportstar column, come amid growing concerns over the workload of Indian players and the recent spate of injuries.A week ago, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia attributed the injury woes plaguing Indian cricket to the team’s tough fixture schedule. The council is now trying to find a solution to the problem.As the ICC prepares to discuss the next four-year international calendar cycle starting in 2027, Gavaskar believes the workload of the players needs to be considered when building the schedule.

Gavaskar’s warning on player workload

Referring to a recent meeting held to review Indian cricket, Gavaskar hoped workload-related concerns would also be reflected in discussions at the ICC.“The recent meeting to review Indian cricket attempted to address the issue. Hopefully, when the ICC meets to discuss the international cricket calendar for the next four-year cycle from 2027, the decision-makers will realize that Indian cricketers are neither machines nor sugarcane to be squeezed endlessly for every drop of juice,” Gavaskar wrote in his column.The former batsman’s comments come at a time when India’s leading players have to juggle a busy schedule across formats and competitions, adding to the physical demands on an already stretched group.

“Indian cricket team is not Indian cricket”

Gavaskar also believes that the conversation about Indian cricket needs to go beyond the senior national team.While India’s international side remains the most visible part of the sport in the country, he argued that it is ultimately produced by a much wider domestic ecosystem and should not be seen as synonymous with Indian cricket itself.“The Indian cricket team is not Indian cricket,” he wrote. “The Indian cricket team is a by-product of Indian cricket.”For Gavaskar, the distinction is particularly important when the discussion turns to India’s much-vaunted bench strength.

Gavaskar questions India’s three-team depth

India’s ability to field several sides with international experience has often been cited as evidence of the country’s vast talent pool. However, Gavaskar feels that having enough players to field multiple teams does not necessarily mean that the domestic system is consistently producing world-class cricketers.He pointed to recent results as a reason to look beyond the perception of India’s extraordinary depth and focus instead on strengthening the system that feeds the national team.“The argument that India’s bench strength is such that it can field three teams is good to claim the world, but the reality, as recent results have shown, is that one Indian team is not good enough to win much silverware at the moment. Yes, the gold at the Asian Games will rejuvenate the team and give them confidence for the coming battles, but if domestic cricket is not prioritized and all the girls are prioritized to both our boys won.” Gavaskar wrote.Gavaskar’s argument therefore goes beyond simply reducing the workload of India’s stars. He believes that the long-term health of Indian cricket depends equally on ensuring that domestic cricket remains strong enough to consistently produce players capable of succeeding at the highest level.As the ICC prepares to map out the international calendar from 2027, Gavaskar’s comments put the spotlight on two related questions: how much cricket India’s players are being asked to play and whether the domestic structure is strong enough to sustain the national team for years to come.