Prevalence of cricket-related musculoskeletal pain among Indian junior club cricketers

Abstract

Background: Cricket is the most commonly played sport in India. The number of children playing cricket are increasing. There is growing evidence that injury rates in junior cricketers are higher than professional cricketers. In India at the community level, there are no standardized specific cricket injury prevention programmes (CIPP) which reduce injury risk. Minimal data is available from Asian countries, especially on junior cricketers. Our study is an attempt to focus on junior club cricketer injuries, plan safety precautions and emphasize role of CIPP. Methods: It was an observational study conducted on male junior club cricketers in the age group of 8-16 years. Based on a self-reported questionnaire, player’s physical status, training, injuries and their nature are assessed over a period of 12 months. Results: Over the study period 36 of 50 cricketers were symptomatic. The lower limb is the most frequently injured. Most common etiology is overuse. We found that the players are not following pre-training warm-up and post-training cool-down. Conclusions: CIPP should be implemented and strictly followed from the early stages of sports life. Pre-training warm-up and post-training cool-down should be included in their routine training. Overuse i.e. playing overtime and ignoring the pain during practice or match should be avoided. A supervised training and regular screening of players by orthopaedician or sports physician will keep them fit to play with full potential.