Dravid provides latest worry for busy Leipus

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When Rahul Dravid suddenly left for Cape Town on Sunday to have an MRI scan done on his troublesome right shoulder, prophets of doom in the guise of journalists could be seen everywhere at Kingsmead, Durban. Worst-case scenarios were imagined and attempts made to ascertain if the Indian vice-captain had been carrying this injury for long.

Indian team manager Dr MK Bhargava was dismissive of these alarms, saying that the team management was only being prudent and money-smart. "Why not use the better opinion in this part of the world, rather than go back and let Dravid come here again to have a check-up?" He had no doubt that it was just a precautionary check to ensure that nothing serious was developing in Dravid's shoulder.

Dr Bhargava said that they wanted to have a check-up done when the team was in Cape Town for five days before the finals. "But then, we couldn't get a date before the 22nd and, on the 24th, we were playing an important game," said Dr Bhargava. "We also needed Dravid for the finals on the 26th." Not only as a batsman, but also as a wicket-keeper, he might well have added.

Dravid's injury scare provides an additional worry for team physio Andrew Leipus. He has had his hands full with injuries and, at a time when his stint with the Indian team is up for review, such a spate of injuries is perhaps cannon-fodder to those looking to ease him out of the team set-up.

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Leipus understands the implications and suggests that a physio can only do so much and that, generally, it is lack of a physical culture among Indians that causes disruptions. "You might do eight laps of the ground, but you could still be unfit," muses Leipus. He reflects that an Australian or a South African goes to a gym regularly. "Why, even women go to a gym three times a week!" The team is attentive to him, but one guesses that genes and background can't be changed easily.

Talking of team fitness, everyone harboured a feeling that Mohammad Azharuddin was the fittest of all Indian cricketers, but he regularly failed the 'beep' test and was the slowest in the long runs. Shane Warne and Steve Waugh are not the fittest of cricketers in international cricket today. "But then, they produce the goods, and that's what remains fresh in people's might," reflects Leipus. "That's the thing about sports. A baseballer or a marathon runner has different fitness needs from a cricketer."

It seems now that everyone in this team has been seriously injured in the past year or so. The list of injured seniors - Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Anil Kumble, Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad, and Ajit Agarkar - is in no way any longer than the list of injured juniors; Ashish Nehra, Zaheer Khan, Hemang Badani and Sadagopan Ramesh all have been laid up in recent times.

Both Leipus and coach John Wright's extensions are up for review on December 23. Wright ends his present contract on November 15, on the eve of the Second Test at Port Elizabeth; by the looks of it, though, there should be no problem in his case. Everyone from team members to former cricketers to team manager is singing his praises. His perseverance and attention to details are chilling; on the day the fixtures for the 2003 World Cup were being announced, Wright was busy going through the schedule and checking what would be required for India to do well in the millennium's first World Cup.

As for Leipus, his case is still not clear. It would really be the Indian team's loss, though, if he were to exit the set-up at this stage. He knows the boys and their medical history inside-out, and such a disruption, with just over a year to go before the 2003 World Cup, could be disastrous. But then, when has an Indian board really been worried about Indian cricket?

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