Rohit Sharma underlines the challenges of playing domestic cricket amidst a heavily loaded international calendar

After India conceded the Border-Gavaskar Trophy earlier this year, a lot has been said about the Indian players needing to feature in a domestic tournaments and further hone their skills. More importantly, BCCI laid down a few plans in place after a detailed meeting which included making it mandatory for the Indian team members to be a part of the domestic circuit.

Talking in the press-conference, the Indian captain for the longer formats pointed out that being a part of the domestic tournaments has come as a part of a plan and not any diktat or punishment. He also highlighted the challenges faced by the Indian players while shedding light on the availability for the domestic tournament.

Rohit said, "[In the] last six-seven years, if you go back and see our calendar, there hasn't been a time where we were sitting at home for 45 days and there is cricket going on. You do get that time when you finish the IPL and if there's nothing happening right after that. But if you see our domestic season, it starts in October - maybe September - and it gets over by February-March. And that is the time India plays a lot of [international] cricket as well. So, guys who are not playing certain formats and have time, and then there is domestic cricket happening, then they will play."

He further added, "But the last six-seven years - I can at least tell about what has happened with me since I've started playing Test cricket regularly, which is from 2019 - you hardly have any time. When you play so much international cricket through the year, you need some time off as well as a cricketer just to refresh, get your mind right, just to be ready for the upcoming season. But we have addressed it now and nobody takes it for granted or anything like that."

He concluded by saying, "And those who are available and fit, obviously, you expect people to play. I don't think it is a diktat. It's one of the things that BCCI has obviously put forward. As selectors, we expect people, when they're available, to play because that can only strengthen our domestic structure. Not just for their form or their fitness and playing cricket, but it can only strengthen our domestic structure."