Virender Sehwag to Indian team: Don’t play Asia cup

Defending Asia Cup champions team India will face arch rivals Pakistan on September 19 in Dubai. The match comes immediately after an encounter with one of the teams yet to be qualified which has left the former Indian opening batsman Virender Sehwag fuming.

Sehwag feels that scheduling was done in a bizarre manner as any player needs at least 24-48 hours rest after a match, be it against any opposition, weak or strong doesn’t matter. He also said that with such poor scheduling India should not be playing the Asia Cup.

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“I am really shocked to see the scheduling because which country plays back-to-back cricket matches these days? There was a gap of two days in between the T20 matches in England and here you are playing ODIs under hot Dubai weather and that too without a break. So, I don’t think this is a correct scheduling,” Sehwag said.

He said that BCCI should have responded to this situation rather than getting too much into the four day game against Sussex. This comes as an advantage for Pakistan as they will face a tired Indian team as the heat in Dubai takes a toll on the players. Even if you are a superhuman you tend to experience the fatigue from back to back matches, which should not be the case when it comes to professional cricket.

“When Team India will play the Asia Cup in Dubai in September, there will be too much heat and it will hamper the players’ recovery process. Pakistan will be in a good shape whereas the Indian players will be tired. And if we end up losing the match, then there might be a problem as we all are very passionate whenever we play against Pakistan. We always want India to win against Pakistan but if the Indian players are tired then Pakistan will definitely have the advantage,” he said.