Courtesy: BCCI
BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia has cleared that Nitin Patel, who heads the board’s Sports Science and Medical squad, didn’t resign, but his stint was extended for a period of three months on a special request. Nitin has been with Team India for almost three years and on December 31st, 2024, his contract concluded. Earlier, there were reports that claimed Nitin resigned from his post, but Saikia said the board requested him to continue with Team India for three more months. Following these developments, BCCI has been looking to fill the post, which will fall vacant on March 31, 2025.
Talking about misreporting, Saikia told the Times of India, “It has been wrongly reported by the media that Patel has resigned. His contract/tenure was over on December 31, 2024 then we made him a special request to extend his tenure by three months, which he agreed to. His extended contract will be over by March 31, 2025. We are trying to get a new person. We are in talks with a few people. We wanted Nitin to continue, but he’s got a pressing personal issue to attend to, so can’t continue, so we will have an alternative person in his place.”
Nitin’s successful stint marks the recoveries of star India players
During Nitin’s stint, star players such as Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, KL Rahul, and Hardik Pandya recovered from their respective injuries. The notable recovery was of Bumrah, who was not expected to get the better of his back spasm before the World Cup 2023 but it was Nitin’s guidance that helped the speedster make it to India’s World Cup 2023 squad.
Recently, Mohammed Shami also made a comeback in international cricket after staying out of cricketing action for almost a year due to an ankle injury. Shami played an instrumental role in India’s title victory in the Champions Trophy 2025, bagging nine wickets in five matches at an economy of 5.68.
