Photo via Hindustan Times

BCCI invites applications for Head of Sports Science at CoE as injury management continues to draw flak

Under persistent fire over rising player casualties and prolonged recuperation periods, the Board of Control for Cricket in India has formally advertised for a new Head of Sports Science and Medicine to work out of its Bengaluru Centre of Excellence. The opening has sat vacant following the departure of Nitin Patel in 2025, after an agreement with Andrew Leipus fell apart when he withdrew due to personal family commitments.

Although an evaluation committee featuring Dr. Dinshaw Pardiwala, Dr.

Ashish Soni, and VVS Laxman whittled down five contenders, the official recruitment call only materialized after a comprehensive assessment summit involving Laxman, board secretary Devajit Saikia, national head coach Gautam Gambhir, and international skippers Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer. Ongoing rehabilitation concerns were recently underscored when prospective Afghanistan series picks Jasprit , Washington Sundar, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Harshit Rana required medical approval, after which a fresh breakdown sidelined Rana, opening the door for Yash Thakur across both that series and the Asian Games.