Mechanism and situation of injuries in fast bowlers: A YouTube-based video analysis study

Abstract

Objectives: The present study was conducted with the objective of identifying the cause of injuries in fast bowlers. Materials and Methods: The present study is a video analysis study, keywords such as “fast bowler’s injury,” “failure of bowling,” and “cricket injuries” were searched on YouTube. Bowling action was divided into four stages – Stage 1 – jump, Stage 2 – back foot contact, Stage 3 – front foot contact, and Stage 4 – follow-through. The type and timing of injury (stage) were noted after analyzing the videos. Results: Sixteen injuries were identified in five videos. It was observed that 15 athletes had acute injury to lower limb and 1 athlete had an acute injury to lower back. 13/16 injuries happened in Stage 2 and 3/16 injuries happened in Stage 4. Conclusion: Most of the injuries happened at the time of landing and follow-through. Therefore, improvement of ground conditions, especially around the bowling area, and addition of exercise-based injury prevention programs can reduce the risk of injuries. This is more important for young fast bowlers at the club levels and state levels, as proper training at an early stage, can prevent injuries in many young fast bowlers.