Subhechcha Ganguly 
Respected Parmeet Singh Chandhiok has achieved so much in the field of sports physiotherapy. Being the physiotherapist for the USA Senior Men’s Cricket Team and the USA Under 19 Men’s Cricket Team is truly impressive. His accreditation as a BCCI Level-1 Physio since 2006 and his role as the physiotherapist for the BCCI Specialised Pace Bowling Academy in Mohali speak volumes about his expertise. It’s amazing that he has also worked as the physiotherapist for various state cricket teams in the Ranji Trophy and for zonal and national cricket camps conducted by the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. Interview Times is really glad to interview such a talented and down to earth personality.
Q1) Could you please share how your journey in this field started?
Ans : Thankyou for having me , so the story is a bit different . Someone from DDCA (Delhi and District Cricket Association ) called my college principal and asked that if he knows someone from Masters in Sports background (someone who has good knowledge and expertise in Sports ) for the Delhi Ranji Team and that is how I got this opportunity and never looked back.
So basically the World knows what works the best as the opportunity came to you without , you seeking it .
Yes you can basically say that.
Q2) Could you describe the most challenging situation you’ve encountered in your profession to date and explain how you overcame it with your dedicated efforts?
A snap with the Delhi Senior Men’s Team 2021-22
Ans : Subhechcha , there are actually many challenges. Being a team physio , your main goal is to make the athlete return to the goal as soon as possible. Recently we have National Cricket Academies and State Cricket Academies ,but when I started in this Profession , there were no State Academies. That is the reason we had to manage mostly on our own.
So if there were any injuries we had to treat them. If there are any cuts or wounds we had to take care of them, as there were no doctors or Ambulances primarily stationed in the Grounds. So the physio was the only point of contact of doing everything.
They were instances where people got hit in the ribs , in the heads or there would be ankle twists. There would be Hamstring tears where you have to tape them and make them return to sports as soon as possible.
Q3) Do you personally conduct training for your team, or is there a separate team dedicated to this task?
Ans :So nowadays ,things have evolved. Each team has strength and Conditioning Coaches ,normally called a trainer and the Physio.And for all the matches we have an ambulance and a doctor during the matches at the ground . So every team has a physio and a trainer and our work is to screen the athletes ,then whatever challenges or shortcoming we find out , we decide it ourselves , and work on that accordingly.
Q4) Do you offer any advice on preventing injuries, considering the intense competitive spirit that athletes typically bring to the field?
Ans : Basically there is a term called Prehabilitation . We all know Rehabilitation .Rehabilitation is what exercises we do to recover from the injury, and Pre Habilitation is what we do to prevent the injuries .So that is what I was saying before , there is a musculoskeletal screening done before the season of all the athletes , in which we get to know the basic muscle health or joint health of the athletes . If some muscles or joints have less range of motion, so accordingly with their shortcomings we give the tasks to the athletes to work on that and come to the optimal level. So once they are all done , we gear them up for the next season.
Q5)Does the BCCI have a specified retirement age for cricket players, or is it possible for well-trained athletes to continue playing regardless of their age?
Ans :So I would not go much into the team selection as its completely their (BCCI’s call) but the wear and tear is much faster than when we are young , so then we have to exercise more and train ourselves more to keep ourselves fitter. There is no way that we can stop the wear and tear but if we keep our muscles and joints stronger and keep excercizing regularly , the process becomes slower.
So there a younger person who doesn’t excercize can be less fitter than a person comparitively aged who excercizes regularly ?
Yes definitely there can be a 19 year old athlete who can be less fitter if he is not involved in any excercize compared to a 38 year old athlete who is working regularly.
Q6) Apart from physiotherapists, which other professionals do you believe can provide assistance to athletes in the field of sports?
Ans : According to my experience when any athlete enters the academy to learn a sport , the basic thing starts from a coach. The Coach has to inculcate everything into him because the physio and the trainer would only come when he gets selected to a team or if the athlete gets selected to the camp.
The coach inculcates not only the training of sports but the way of reporting an injury ,not hiding any injury. He imparts knowledge that an athlete can not ever forget in life. So a coach is very important .
Q7) Could you provide insights into whether the coach remains consistent or changes within the field of sports?
Ans : So I can tell you about what happens in Cricket since I am involved with that sport, so when an athlete as a 14 or 15 year old joins an academy he has a different coach.When he gets selected to the State Team he has a different coach so U-19 has a different coach U-20 has a different Coach . Basically different tournaments has different coaches but the basic place where he learns the Sport remains the same.So its basically ,that an athlete learns from different coaches and gets and implements the best out of the coaches. So currently the teams have a different batting coach ,bowling and fielding coaches because they want the team to learn from specialised people and do the best.
You might be seeing the matches now , we have the best coaches in the world.
Q8) Also can you share about what are the current things you are working with now or what are your projects in the upcoming days.
Ans : So currently I am working with the USA Cricket (Senior Men’s Team ) and I also did an assignment for U-19 World Cup Qualifiers which was in Canada. So I think after this we would be starting camps for Under 19 and work on the strategies regarding it.
Q9) So when the coaches personally train the athletes they tend to grow a connection with them . Do you have any experiences that you want to share on this topic, any friends you have made or any experiences you have had ?
Ans : So since I am working from 2004 , I have made many friends in Cricket, starting with Shikhar Dhawan being the closest one .
Parmeet Singh Chandhiok with Shikhar Dhawan
He is a wonderful , fun loving person and really close to me .When I started , Delhi was being captained by Ajay Jadeja. I consider him as my Guru. He is the best Cricketing Minds in the world.
Parmeet Singh Chandhiok with Ajay Jadeja
Q10) So whenever a team goes for playing the tournaments, do you have to stay there for the entire duration .
Ans : The scenario is I have always worked as a Team Physio , so I have to generally stay for the entire duration with the team until the Tournament is done. That is also one of the main reasons , we have over the time build a connection with the team.
Q11) Thankyou so much for sharing your thoughts. Interview Times is extremely grateful to have you on this platform . Finally can you share any word of advice to people who want to go for Cricket or any kind of Sports.
Ans : Thankyou for having me . Definitely I would like to share that give your best and play with a competitive spirit ,but do not be overburdened with expectations while playing a sport . Train your body and your mind as well. Understand that it is a team sport and not everyone would get selected always . So give your best and be happy while playing a sport.
