Former Indian cricketer Subramaniam Badrinath has raised questions over India’s injury management system, particularly the workload management of Jasprit Bumrah. With several key players currently sidelined, Badrinath believes the Centre of Excellence (CoE) can only provide medical and fitness assessments, while the final decision on a player’s selection rests with the captain, coach, and selectors.

Bumrah is currently recovering from knee swelling, while Sai Sudharsan has been ruled out with a left big-toe injury. Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy are also recovering from hamstring issues, while Washington Sundar is dealing with a quadriceps injury.

The growing injury list has brought renewed attention to India’s rehabilitation and workload management processes. According to Badrinath, the CoE’s role is to communicate a player’s physical condition rather than decide whether he should play.

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“I don’t know who made the decision. COE will not make the selection, right? They will just say he is in this state and can play these matches and his body is in this state,” S Badrinath said on his YouTube channel. He added that the captain, head coach and selectors ultimately decide whether a player is fit enough to feature. “COE only passes the information. They aren’t selectors,” he explained.

Badrinath also cautioned against linking every injury within the Indian squad to a single underlying issue. He pointed out that the players have suffered different types of injuries, some of which are unavoidable in professional sport.

“I don’t have an immediate answer to the root cause of so many injuries. It’s important to see what kind of injuries these are. In high-level professional sport, injuries are common,” he said.

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However, S Badrinath believes workload management and consistent fitness monitoring remain crucial, particularly for players with demanding schedules. He described Bumrah’s issue as a chronic problem that could be linked to overuse, while also highlighting Washington Sundar’s recurring fitness concerns.

The former India batter’s comments come at a time when the team management is dealing with multiple absences and will be hoping its key players return to full fitness before the upcoming assignments.