# VVS Laxman defends CoE as India’s injury crisis mounts 2026-08-09T10:48:47+00:00 | Sports | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet VVS Laxman on Sunday defended the BCCI Centre of Excellence amid a spate of injuries to India cricketers, insisting the facility is not merely a rehab centre. Speaking in Bengaluru, Laxman said the CoE works seamlessly with selectors and team management to monitor around 150 male and female players. He rejected the notion of blame, calling injuries "part and parcel" of elite sport. Jasprit Bumrah and B Sai Sudharsan were named in India's Sri Lanka tour squad subject to fitness clearance, but their recovery did not progress in time. Laxman explained that the selection committee requests fitness reports from the CoE before picking players. Those marked with an asterisk, meaning "subject to fitness", are selected conditionally. "It's not a machine where the timelines will always be met," he said. BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia added that squads are picked weeks in advance, so players may still be in rehabilitation at the time of selection. ## Coverage - newindianexpress.com - news.abplive.com - deccanherald.com Tags: BCCI, Centre of Excellence, cricket injuries, Gautam Gambhir, Indian cricket, VVS Laxman Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/laxman-says-coe-more-than-rehab-centre-amid-injury-list/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/laxman-says-coe-more-than-rehab-centre-amid-injury-list/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes.