India's schedule from Asia Cup to World Cup: Heavy workload on the cards

"Virat Kohli has been rested for the Asia Cup 2018," this statement made a lot of talking among the Indian cricket fans and pundits. Well, many asserted it as a futile step while many others stated it as a worthy step to take. Prominently, this (resting Virat Kohli) had nothing to do with the rigor of the tournament rather it has just come up as a prudent measure from BCCI after learning about Virat Kohli's extensive workload in the recent past which also had taken a toll on his fitness in the recent times.

India players high on workload

Right from the start of Asia Cup 2018 till the end of Cricket World Cup 2019, India will be playing at least 27 and at most 30 ODI matches, 9 T20I matches, and 6 Tests. Most of these matches are set to be an away affair for India. To be precise, India will play 2 Test matches, 3 T20I games, and 5 ODI matches at home. And, rest will be away fixture. All in all, it counts for an extensive schedule for India in the upcoming months.

Besides, to add to the lengthy schedule, many of the Indian players will also be featuring in India's grand league, IPL. According to the reports, IPL 2019 will start from 29th March with its final scheduled on 19th May. Hence, maintaining the workload for the Indian players will prove to be an uphill task for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

India's schedule from Asia Cup 2018 to Cricket World Cup 2019

Asia Cup (50-over format), 2018: 15th September to 28th September - 2 Group matches, 3 Super Four matches (if qualified), and a final (if a team finishes in top two in the Super Four league).

West Indies tour of India, 2018: 4th October 2018 to 11th November 2018 - 2 Tests, 5 ODIs, and 3 T20Is.

India tour of Australia, 2018/19: 21st November 2018 to 18th January 2019 - 3 T20Is, 4 Tests, and 3 ODIs.

India tour of New Zealand, 2019: 23rd January 2019 to 10th February 2019 - 5 ODIs and 3 T20Is.

Cricket World Cup, 2019: 30th May to 14th July - 9 league games (round-robin league), and one semifinal (if qualified) and a final (if qualified).

BCCI will need to manage Indian players' workload

The above-mentioned schedule gives us a good idea of India's heavy workload before the start of Cricket World Cup 2019. Right from Asia Cup to the series against New Zealand, India will have a maximum of 9 days of rest between two series or between a tournament and a series.

As a result, managing India's workload aptly will come out as the biggest challenge for BCCI knowing that the Indian players need to be in the right rhythm while heading to the World Cup. This is where the theory of rotating fringe players and first-choice players will come into place. Although these matches will provide India with a vast base to identify their mistakes and strong points, India will need to rest their premier players turn by turn from time to time.