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Tendulkar to press for less cricket at ICC meet

India's cricket captain Sachin Tendulkar will take up the issue of the need for sufficient rest periods while scheduling cricket tours, at the meeting of Test playing captains convened by the International Cricket Council in London on July 11.

In a chat with the media at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore, where the probables for the Asia Cup are now engaged in a coaching camp, Tendulkar said that in his view, too much cricket was being played these days. "I think that there is a definite need for sufficient gaps between tours, to enable players to recover both mentally and physically. Rest periods are crucial if a player is to perform to the peak of his ability," said Tendulkar, adding that he would be taking up the issue at the upcoming meeting.

Sachin will receive support from the likes of Australian captain Mark Taylor, Sri Lankan skipper Arjuna Ranatunga and Pakistan captain Wasim Akram, all of whom are in agreement about the need for a reduction in the number of international engagements being scheduled these days.

Tendulkar told the media that he had not yet finalised his own shortlist of points to raise at the meeting. He will leave the ongoing coaching camp on July 8, two days before it ends, and take a flight to London from Mumbai on July 9. After the meeting on July 11, he will fly direct to Colombo, to lead the Indian team in the Asia Cup quadrangular.

The 14-member squad for the Asia Cup will be announced on July 7. The five national selectors will arrive in Bangalore a day earlier, it was announced.

Meanwhile, the coaching camp, now into its second day, struggled to find momentum in the face of intermittent rain. What is more, the BCCI in a sudden decision gave the job of monitoring the fitness of the players to Tej Krishan Kaul, fitness instructor attached to the Sports Authority of India. Kaur however was yet to arrive in Bangalore, and pending his arrival, the players have been concentrating on batting and bowling practise at the nets, without any regimented physical workouts.

"The training schedule will be finalised only after Kaur gets here," said team manager Madan Lal. The fitness trainer is expected in Bangalore on Wednesday.

Interestingly, one of the most regular attendees at the nets is a certain Dodda Ganesh - member of the Indian touring squad to South Africa and the West Indies, and now dropped from the list of national probables. Ganesh reported to the nets on both days, and took his turn bowling to the Indian frontline batsmen.

"Ganesh was shaping very well on the tours of South Africa and the West Indies," said Madan Lal. "But life is tough for a medium pacer in India. Ganesh has to show his fighting qualities and stage a comeback."

Madan Lal believes that the weather - Bangalore, like most of south and western India, is now in the grip of the annual monsoon - could inhibit plans for a regularised schedule of workouts. "I would personally like to see an extended workout from 7.30 am to 2 pm every day," the Indian manager said. "But we are at the mercy of the rains, so schedules could change every day."

Tendulkar for his part said that the focus would be on all aspects of the game - batting, bowling and fielding. "The camp is useful, we have to get back to the feel of the game, get into shape, get adjusted to one another after the break. It is like a family, which is meeting one another after a period apart," the Indian skipper said.

Meanwhile, in an interesting development, the Bangalore-based Dr Jayant G Paraki, consultant in alternative and holistic medicine, has been asked to look after the squad's "mental toughness". Paraki and his wife, who is a psychologist and specialist in mind and body medicine, will join the camp on Thursday at the invitation of the BCCI.

The initiative came, reportedly, from Karnataka State Cricket Association secretary C Nagaraj, who told the media that the Parakis had offered their services. Team manager Madan Lal had a meeting with the couple to discuss ways and means, and subsequently informed Nagaraj that he would be glad to utilise the services of Dr Paraki.

"In the past, we have lost our way very often in the end stages of the match, and I think a psychologist should be able to help our players and prepare them for handling the pressures of such situations," Madan Lal said.