“I have never seen so many injuries” - When MS Dhoni made a subtle attack on teammates after ENG vs IND 2011 tour

Team India are currently battling an injury crisis on the 2025 tour of England, with the likes of Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, and Akash Deep all sustaining blows ahead of the business end of the Test series. Furthermore, Jasprit Bumrah's workload management and Rishabh Pant's availability as a wicket-keeper due to a finger injury, only worsen the visitors' woes.

The Men in Blue had faced a similar predicament, if not worse, during the 2011 tour of England as well. The MS Dhoni-led side were hammered 0-4 in the Test series, and the tour began on an ominous note when Zaheer Khan pulled his hamstring on the very first day at Lord's. Fellow pacer Ishant Sharma also suffered a ligament injury on his left ankle during the third Test at Edgbaston, and was ruled out for the remainder of the Tests, as well as the subsequent ODIs.

The dents in the bowling attack continued as both Praveen Kumar and Munaf Patel sustained injuries during the ODI series. The latter injured his ankle while fielding during the fifth and last ODI at Cardiff, taking the injury count to nine, over the course of the tour. The right-arm pacer left the field after bowling four overs, as the remaining overs of his quota were bowled by part-time bowler, Virat Kohli.

The injury had a significant impact on the game, as Kohli conceded 44 runs off his six overs, and India failed to defend the target in a rain-curtailed encounter, ultimately losing the series.

MS Dhoni remarked how the number of injuries sustained during the tour were baffling.

"I have never seen so many injuries in the last five years. To lose nine to eleven players in one series is something I can never forget. Munaf got injured and we had to bowl his remaining four overs by someone else. Virat bowled well but his last over was expensive. We lost five tosses and we bowled second in nearly the same conditions, which were wet and that made it tough for our spinners," the former Indian skipper had said after the six-wicket loss (via ESPN Cricinfo).

Dealing with injuries and an ageing squad close to transition, Team India failed to win a single match across three formats during the 2011 tour. The whitewash in the Test series was followed by a loss in the one-off T20I, and a 0-3 scoreline in the five-match ODI series.

Team India to add Anshul Kamboj to the Test squad after injury crisis ahead of fourth Test

With two frontline seamers and a pace bowling all-rounder on the injury list, the Shubman Gill-led side are in desperate need of reinforcements. Right-arm pacer Anshul Kamboj, who played for India 'A' in England recently, has reportedly been included in the main squad, and joins Prasidh Krishna as a potential third seamer option for the next Test.

The fourth Test between the two heavyweights is scheduled to take place at Old Trafford, Manchester, from Wednesday, July 23, onwards.