Former Indian cricketer VVS Laxman has offered a word of advice to injured players, stressing the importance of patience and adherence to rehabilitation protocols.
Laxman addressed the misconception that players must meet specific timelines for recovery.
"There is a misconception that the timelines have to be met," he said in a chat with PTI.
"I understand that sometimes you know that you will be fit in a particular time-frame, but sometimes the recovery won't be there (in that time) or the result won't be seen," Laxman added.
The veteran batsman highlighted the cases of Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and Prasidh Krishna as examples of players who have shown remarkable patience and dedication.
"I think having patience to follow the protocols is very, very critical, but still sometimes the recovery can be a little late. We have seen Rishabh Pant's case and we have seen Jassie (Jasprit Bumrah) being here, along with Shreyas, KL, Prasidh…a lot of players. They have really worked hard, showed patience and were rewarded," he said.
"The challenging part of the rehab is that the entire rehab will probably be for two-three hours in the whole day and the rest of the day they (players) have nothing to do.
"Here we are talking about elite sportspersons who actually are busy playing or training six to eight hours, and suddenly they realise that they are confined to the rehab room.
"Once they recover, they progress to the ground (at NCA), but it's a maximum four to five hours. So, they are required to be mentally strong and not get frustrated," he noted.