India continues to navigate a major injury crisis in the chaotic phase after the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. After injuries and unavailabilities played a major part in the team’s fortunes across formats in Ireland, England, and Sri Lanka, it has begun to affect the ongoing home season as well.
All-rounder Harshit Rana suffered a new injury right before the start of the T20I series against Afghanistan as Yash Thakur replaced him in the squad. After the series opener in Delhi, reports emerged that Varun Chakravarthy has also been ruled out due to an injury.
The Centre of Excellence (CoE) is in the thick of things as far as the recurring injuries and players breaking down are concerned. The pattern of players suffering a fresh injury after being cleared can no longer be considered merely coincidental. While the players’ fitness and the unfortunate nature of injuries also play a role, the sheer volume of injuries calls for some serious introspection.
During the recent review meeting, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) discussed the issue of injuries and the need to revamp protocols at the CoE to tackle the issue.
On that note, let us take a look at the five times an Indian player got injured right after returning from the CoE.
#1 Varun Chakravarthy, 2026
The latest casualty in the form of Varun Chakravarthy, broke down after just one appearance since his fitness clearance from the CoE recently. The mystery spinner had been in Bengaluru, recovering from an injury he sustained during the T20I series in England.
While four players’ inclusion was subject to fitness for the Afghanistan series, Varun Chakravarthy was deemed fit to compete without a last-minute clearance test. The veteran spinner produced a solid spell of 1-16 from his four overs in the seven-wicket win, but he faces another period on the sidelines once again, affecting his availability for the upcoming Asian Games 2026.
This marks the third prominent injury that the bowler has suffered this year. He also dealt with a fractured toe in the second half of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season, causing him to miss the tour of Ireland. On that occasion as well, after clearance, he only featured in three matches before sustaining an injury.
#2 Harshit Rana, 2026
Much like his franchise teammate as mentioned above, Harshit Rana has had an injury-riddled year. The pace bowling all-rounder faced a lengthy spell on the sidelines due to a knee injury, ruling him out of the T20 World Cup 2026 and the IPL 2026 campaigns.
He returned to the Indian team for the Ireland and England tour after a spell at the CoE, but without any significant match practice, which is usually recommended after such a long layoff. After just four appearances under his belt, he suffered another injury, ruling him out of the last two T20Is against England.
Later, reports emerged that Harshit Rana was cleared by the CoE for Ireland and England despite the fact that he was overweight. The extra weight could have reportedly been a contributing factor to his injury, which raises some serious questions about the physios.
Harshit Rana was set to make a comeback in the Afghanistan series after being named in the squad, but failed his fitness clearance after suffering a new injury.
#3 Hardik Pandya, 2026
Team India’s premier all-rounder Hardik Pandya is no stranger to the CoE, with his profile and intense workload naturally drawing recurring injuries. While he has had several rehabilitation programs followed by subsequent clearances, the most recent instance has been one of the most baffling ones for sure.
Hardik Pandya had a brief spell at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) after suffering an injury towards the end of the IPL 2026 season. He was cleared by the physios for the ODI series against Afghanistan, but right after receiving his clearance, he felt discomfort, which turned out to be a fresh quadriceps injury.
The star player had to continue his recovery at the CoE, and is still working his way back towards full fitness. He was recently named in the India ‘A’ white-ball squad for the home series against Australia ‘A’, scheduled for later this month. But his involvement is still subject to fitness clearance.
#4 Jasprit Bumrah, 2022
Team India star speedster Jasprit Bumrah is also another name who has unfortunately become synonymous with injuries for some years. He recently made a comeback from injury in the first T20I against Afghanistan after being cleared by the CoE.
However, back in 2022, when the CoE functioned as the National Cricket Academy (NCA), the physios had played a massive gamble that failed. On that occasion, the Indian right-arm pacer was troubled by a back injury in England that ruled him out of the Asia Cup 2022.
With the focus being on the T20 World Cup, scheduled to be held in a few months, he was cleared and rushed back for the home T20I series against Australia. However, the speedster only played two matches before breaking down, leading to a much more severe injury that kept him out for 11 months.
Jasprit Bumrah ended up missing the T20 World Cup 2022, the IPL 2023, and the World Test Championship Final 2023.
#5 Nitish Kumar Reddy, 2025
Among the players who were recently cleared by the CoE, Nitish Kumar Reddy has had to deal with a wide variety of injuries over the last 12 months. In July 2025, he suffered an injury during a gym session midway through the Test series in England, ruling him out of the last two matches.
After a rehab spell at the CoE, the India all-rounder was cleared for the tour of Australia amid Hardik Pandya’s injury in the Asia Cup 2025. Nitish Kumar Reddy went on to make his ODI debut during the tour, but suffered a fresh injury in the very next match. He was ruled out of the final ODI in Sydney and did not feature in the subsequent five-match T20I series.
Edited by Gokul Nair
