Kirsten backs Dhoni on gruelling schedule

Gary Kirsten, India's coach, has backed Mahendra Singh Dhoni's views on the Asia Cup's hectic schedule.

"I think that three games in four days in this heat took a toll on the players," he said after India's net session on Tuesday. "It is unfair to expect players to play that amount of cricket in such short space of time in 35 degrees heat."

Dhoni had blamed India's listless performance on the field against Bangladesh in the on-going Asia Cup by schedule which has teams playing matches on consecutive days. "We have played cricket for 36 of the last 84 hours," Dhoni said. Rajiv Shukla, the Indian board vice-president, responded by saying if a player wanted rest, he could inform the BCCI which would be happy to send replacements.

India will play Pakistan on Wednesday and Sri Lanka on Thursday and, if they qualify for the final, will play on Sunday as well. The Test players will get a short break before they head to Sri Lanka for a three-match series which begins with a tour game on July 18.

With a packed international season ahead, Kirsten has repeatedly stressed the need for developing a pool of players and implementing a rotation policy to keep players fresh. During last month's Kitply cup in Bangladesh, he said: "We are going to look at every player individually and see if there's an opportunity for him to be rested. It's a long year so we'll look at opportunities [for resting players] through the year."

He had also raised concerns about the amount of cricket Dhoni played over the past year. "Mahendra Singh Dhoni is probably the most obvious example of a man needing a break ... MS is a brilliant cricketer and the sort of man who is happy to play every game, but he knows that it is not practical. Fatigue can lead to loss of form as well as injuries, both of which can adversely affect a player's long-term career."