Jaipur: Former Indian cricket team physio John Gloster feels players are being pushed dangerously close to mental and physical exhaustion by a gruelling international schedule, which requires an urgent trimming to prevent breakdowns.

Gloster, who is here as the physio of Rajasthan Royals team in the Indian Premier League (IPL), said cricket has become very demanding and it was necessary to draw a line on the number of games.

"They are playing close to 11 months now. It is taxing physically and mentally too. There may be some who can cope well but they are being pushed too hard and might be close to their limits," Gloster told PTI on the sidelines of the Royals practice session here.

Gloster said the administrators need to analyse the current schedule, which was causing fatigue.

"The scheduling part lies with the administrators. The mental fatigue is also very alarming and players need recovery time," he said.

To top it all, Gloster said Asian players were not as physically fit as their counterparts in Africa and Australia but felt they more than made up for it with their hard work and determination. 

Looking back at his tenure as Team Indian physio, Gloster said he shared a good equation with the entire squad.

"In the subcontinent cricketers are big stars but I had very good relations with all players," he said.

"It was a wonderful experience. Working with players like Sachin (Tendulkar) was wonderful. My wife is also an Indian," he added.
Source : PTI