Common Injuries In Cricket And How To Prevent Them

Cricket Injuries: Overview

Studies have shown that the most common cricket injuries are hamstring strain and lower back injuries. Whether you bowl, bat, or field, you may be at risk of injuries on the field. Injuries may result from overloading or other impacts. Injuries may occur at the start of the cricket session, when workloads suddenly increase, or at the end of the session due to the increasing effect of the season.

The injury rate in bowling is calculated at 41.3% of total cricket injuries. On the other hand, fielding and wicketkeeping injuries are calculated at 28.6% and batting injuries at 17.1% of the total cricket injuries. However, the most common injuries that cricketers may face on the field are outlined below and the possible preventive measures to control them.

The Most Common Cricket Injuries

1. Rotator cuff tear

Batters, bowlers, and fielders use the shoulders extensively and put them into overdrive. So, all players are at risk of rotator cuff injuries. The rotator cuff comprises four major muscles – that help stabilize the shoulder joint. Any repetitive motion of the shoulder can cause an overloading of tissues. Any damage to the rotator cuff muscles makes your shoulder batting and bowling very painful and difficult. Rotator cuff injuries occur when you damage any of the four rotator cuff muscles.

The common symptoms of rotator cuff injuries may include pain, swelling, and decreased range of motion. However, the symptoms may also vary according to your conditions.

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How to prevent rotator cuff injury in cricket?

A lack of stability and strength can cause injuries in the rotator cuff. Ensure the strength and stability of your shoulders before playing cricket. As well as this, you need to ensure the given preventive measures to avoid the chances of injuries:

• Warm up your body before playing and cool down when the cricket session is over
• Keep your posture maintained
• Avoid repetitive overhead movements
• Use proper throwing techniques to avoid stress
• Wear shoulder braces or sleeves when necessary

2. Lower back pain

Lower back pain is the most common problem among bowlers. Actually, bowling requires a lot of repetitive movements, rotation, and extension and puts extra pressure on your lower back. Young bowlers from 16 to 24 years of age are at a high risk of stress fracture because they put extra pressure repetitively on their lumbar spine. The most common symptom of lower back injury is pain that may worsen when standing or arching backwards.

How to prevent lower back in cricket?

Professional trainers suggest the following preventive measures to avoid the chances of lower back pain or injuries when bowling:

• Warm up your muscles before bowling and cool down when the session ends
• Do regular stretching exercises to keep your muscles active and strengthened
• Wear back support braces to avoid the impacts of stress and overloading
• Improve your bowling and running technique

3. Hamstring sprain

A hamstring sprain, also known as a pulled hamstring, occurs when one or more hamstring muscles get stretched too far and start tearing. A hamstring sprain can be a mild injury with little pain and a short recovery time. As well as this, it can be severe and need surgery to get full recovery.

The hamstring may occur when a cricketer takes a sudden sprint. For example, it usually happens among the batters who take a sudden single run. As well as this, fielders can also face this problem because they require a sudden movement to catch or stop the ball. Lack of strength and poor conditioning are the leading causes of hamstring sprain.

How to prevent hamstring sprain in cricket?

The following are the effective preventive measures suggested by professional trainers or healthcare professionals to have an injury-free cricket experience:

• Warm up your body thoroughly before playing and cool down once the session completes
• Regular stretching exercises help keep your muscles flexible and strong
• Increase the duration of your practice slowly
• Do not practice too much
• Wear calf supports or sleeves to avoid overuse injuries and pain

4. Ankle sprain

An ankle sprain is apainfu condition that occurs when you roll, twist or turn your ankle awkwardly. It may result in stretch or tear to the ligaments – tough bands of tissues that help hold your ankle bones together. Playing cricket can put extra pressure on the lower extremity when you quickly move, sprint, and shift into sudden movements.

Ankle sprains can happen in all cricketers – bowlers, batsmen, wicket-keepers, and fielders. The common symptoms of an ankle sprain may include pain, tenderness when touched, swelling, brushing, instability in the ankle, restricted range of motion, and popping sensation at the time of injury.

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How to prevent ankle sprain in cricket?

you can avoid ankle injuries by following the given preventive measures:

• Warm up your muscles properly
• Ensure proper muscle conditioning
• Wear proper athletic footwear
• Avoid running on uneven surfaces
• Wear ankle supports to keep your ankles stress free

5. Throwers’ elbow

Throwers’ elbow, medically known as medial epicondylitis, is a painful condition that makes you feel pain inside the elbow. It occurs either at the start of the session due to a sudden increase in the workload or at the end of the session due to fatigue. The throwing technique of blowers and fielders can often be a key factor in developing throwers’ elbows.

The condition may make you feel pain on both sides of the elbow joints. As well as this, weakness, decreased throwing velocity, stiffness, general movements restrictions, tingling, and numbness around the elbow joint are other symptoms.

How to prevent throwers’ elbows in cricket?

You need to follow the given preventive measures suggested by the professionals to help avoid the chances of throwers’ elbow:

• Warmup your elbow muscles
• Bracing and taping your elbow joints
• Modifying equipment
• Avoid repetitive movements
• Learn proper throwing techniques
• Wearing elbow supports

Conclusion

Cricketers involve repetitive movements, including running, jumping, sliding, bowling, throwing balls, and more. All these actions can put extra pressure on different parts of your body. The most commonly occurring cricket injuries are shoulder, lower back, elbow, leg, and foot injuries. Hopefully, you will have an idea of how these injuries occur while playing cricket. As well as this, we have also mentioned the potential preventive measures to avoid the chances of injuries. Warning braces keep your body parts protected, helping reduce the chances of injuries. At 360 relief, you can get a variety of cricket injury braces to get a safe cricket experience.