“In IPL with different franchises” - Twitterati react as Wasim Jaffer wonders about the last time Team India played with a full-strength squad

Former Indian Test opener Wasim Jaffer has raised serious questions about the fitness of the current Team India squad. India are in the firing line in the wake of their ODI series defeat to Bangladesh. The Men in Blue went down to Bangladesh by five runs in the second ODI in Dhaka on Wednesday, December 7, thus conceding a 0-2 lead in the three-match series.

Earlier, they lost the rain-affected ODI series in New Zealand 0-1 as well. Before that, they were hammered by 10 wickets by England in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2022. The Men in Blue also failed to win the Asia Cup in the UAE, a tournament in which they have tasted incredible success over the years.

Reflecting on Team India’s recent losses, Jaffer took to his official Twitter handle on Thursday, December 8, and shared a thought-provoking post, trying to remember the last time India played with a full-strength squad. His tweet read:

“When was the last time India played a full strength team? Where no one was rested or missing due to injury? #BANvIND.?”

Jaffer’s post elicited plenty of responses. Some came up with humorous replies, while others countered the motive behind the post, wondering why Team India, which has boasted of producing two to three teams, needed a full-strength squad to beat Bangladesh.

A few also criticized the former cricketer for being unwilling to point a finger at the Indian Premier League (IPL) as one of the causes of India’s downfall. Here is a compilation of some reactions to Jaffer’s post:

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“Can't have guys coming in to play for the country half-fit” - Team India skipper Rohit Sharma

Team India skipper Rohit Sharma acknowledged that the frequency of players getting injured is a matter of serious concern. Speaking after the five-run defeat in the second ODI in Dhaka, Rohit commented:

“There are few injury concerns, we need to get to the bottom of this. Need to try and monitor them, because it's important to understand this. When they come to play for India, they need to be at more than 100 percent. We need to monitor their workload because we can't have guys coming in to play for the country half-fit.”

Incidentally, Rohit himself injured his thumb while attempting a catch in the second ODI and has been ruled out of the final match of the series. His participation in the Test series is also under doubt.