The Youth Cricketer: Special Considerations

Cricket - Youth One Day Match - England Under-19’s v India Under-19’s - Rocky Flintoff in action. Action Images via Reuters/Matthew Childs

What is Growth and Maturation?

Clinicians and practitioners often use the terms maturation, growth spurt, and peak height velocity (PHV) interchangeably to describe changes linked to adolescence (around age 10-19 years). Maturity is the process towards an adult (mature) state, whilst growth refers to changes in size (see table 1)⁽¹⁾.

Growth and maturation are not linear processes; instead, there are times when biological systems change a lot (e.g., during the adolescent growth spurt), whilst other phases are steadier. There are also differences between boys and girls. On average, boys reach PHV just before the age of 14, whilst girls experience this approximately two years earlier. Boys typically have faster growth rates and gain more muscle mass during puberty, whilst girls, on average, gain more fat mass and have a slightly less intense growth spurt⁽¹⁾. It is not unusual for athletes to struggle with technique or coordination (‘adolescent awkwardness’) during periods of fast growth⁽²⁾.

“Creating a culture of trust, where athletes can report pain/com￾plaints without fear, will allow injuries to be managed at an early stage.”

Large differences in maturity status between athletes of the same age are common. In fact, skeletal age may differ by five to six years within the same age group⁽³⁾. For boys, this may give a temporary advantage to earlier maturing athletes who benefit from increased size and improved physical capacity. There is less evidence for girls; however, performances in sports relying on strength, power, and speed show less pronounced increases with the onset of puberty compared to boys⁽⁴⁾. This potential plateau is important to be aware of, so that athletes don’t overcompensate by suddenly training a lot more, as this could increase injury risk.

Large differences in maturity status between athletes of the same age are common. In fact, skeletal age may differ by five to six years within the same age group⁽³⁾. For boys, this may give a temporary advantage to earlier maturing athletes who benefit from increased size and improved physical capacity. There is less evidence for girls; however, performances in sports relying on strength, power, and speed show less pronounced increases with the onset of puberty compared to boys⁽⁴⁾. This potential plateau is important to be aware of, so that athletes don’t overcompensate by suddenly training a lot more, as this could increase injury risk.

Injury Patterns

Maturity status can affect the injuries athletes might sustain. The immature skeleton is prone to different injuries than a mature skeleton. For example, Sever’s disease (heel), Osgood-Schlatter’s (knee), Little League Elbow (medial epicondyle apophysitis), or stress fractures to the lower back (spondylolysis/-listhesis)(see figure 1).In general, growth-related injuries follow a bottom-to-top pattern, meaning that less mature players are more likely to get a growth-related injury in the heel or knee, whilst more mature players get growth-related injuries in the hip/groin/pelvis⁽⁵⁾. As the skeleton matures, the same mechanisms are more likely to result in muscle/tendon injuries, explaining why injury patterns change as players get older⁽⁶⁾.

Table 1: Key terminology relating to growth and maturation⁽¹⁾