Former Indian cricketer and coach Rahul Dravid shared his thoughts on the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in cricket. In a lighthearted remark, he wondered if technology could be used to create five clones of fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah.
Dravid said he wouldn’t support such advancements, as they would reduce the game’s ‘fun’ and ‘uniqueness.’ However, the former India coach is optimistic about using AI and data analysis for injury prediction, as long as it doesn’t replace the human element.
“Can we clone five Bumrahs or something? I mean, I’m just saying that, but that wouldn’t be fun either, right? I mean, what would be the fun in that, right? Where’s the uniqueness then?,” Dravid was quoted as saying by PTI.
He emphasized that sports should remain untouched by AI to preserve their uniqueness and human essence. The former coach also pointed out that Jasprit Bumrah‘s excellence lies in his rarity, as replicating his skills is extremely challenging.
“I think maybe leave sport alone for a bit and we don’t want to get AI too involved in sport. There’s got to be that human element to it. There’s got to be a level of uniqueness to sport. So, that would be my wish really that we’d never get to a point where we are… It becomes easy. Bumrah is unique because it’s so hard to do what Bumrah does.”
Rahul Dravid shares his insights on the potential use of AI in cricket
Advocating for a balanced approach, Rahul Dravid discussed the potential role of AI in cricket. He expressed hope that AI could assist in predicting injuries, especially since there is no definitive explanation for issues like stress fractures.
“On the sporting field, one of the things that you are really hopeful about what AI might be able to do, is (to predict) injuries,” he said.
Dravid noted that, despite advancements in sports medicine, predicting injuries in cricket remains challenging.
“You just look at the level of injuries that we have and no one really has a perfect answer as to why people pick up stress fractures and there is no one size fits all; I am just using a stress fracture for the back as an example for fast bowlers.”
“You have seen over the last years so much of data, so much of sports medicine, science and stuff going into it but no one being able to really predict that, that’s sad, that’s (about) people’s careers, lives. So if AI can get us there and we will be able to predict injuries.”
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