Following the recent focus on discipline, with high-profile names like Ahmed Shehzad and Umar Akmal dumped from provisional squads, the Pakistan cricket team is now receiving military training - literally.
The national team’s boot camp started on Saturday at Pakistan Military Academy (PMA) Kakul and the players have been undergoing fitness tests under the Army’s supervision.
However, before the team left for Abbotabad, the PCB organised an initial fitness test for the players, with a benchmark of 17 points set to pass the exam set by national team fitness trainer Grant Luden.
Azhar Ali
Fitness is now a prerequisite for any international cricketer
Among the players to ace that fitness test are veterans Misbah-ul-Haq and Younis Khan, while those failing the test included senior spinners Saeed Ajmal and Zulfiqar Babar, along with Umar Akmal - already penalised over lack of discipline - and arguably the most high-profile culprit, Sarfraz Ahmed.
Sarfraz, who was named the new T20 captain last month, now obviously needs to work on his fitness to continue meriting leadership in a format where fitness levels are even more pertinent than they are in the longer formats.
The players who emerged the fittest of all were Shan Masood, Fawad Alam and Mohammad Rizwan - no real surprises there - with the former topping the test according to reports.
Younis Khan - still going strong
Along with these three, and the two aforementioned veterans, Anwar Ali, Babar Azam and Sami Aslam also did well in the fitness test. While Shoaib Malik and Wahab Riaz showed improvement compared to their previous fitness levels, almost everyone else who passed was given an average grade.
Shahid Afridi and Mohammed Hafeez pulled out of the fitness test owing to injuries, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see them do well when they eventually take the test. When senior players like Misbah, Younis, Afridi and Hafeez are among the fittest in the squad, it goes to show the dire fitness levels of our youngsters.
While Pakistan have never been among the fittest teams, the game has changed especially since the rise of T20 cricket, and hence the national team would need to evolve accordingly, if it wants to overcome its recent slump in limited-overs format.
Misbah-ul-Haq, still among the fittest
As has become evident, neither Sarfraz nor Azhar Ali are among the fitter players in the squad and hence, neither skipper will be a role model for the younger players that break into the national team - unless they work on this long neglected aspect of their games.
One of the reasons why Misbah has been so successful in captaining Pakistan, a team perpetually marred by divisions and indiscipline, is by garnering respect as a role model for the younger players. He is the first to head to the gym, and has always been among the fittest players in the side, since he made the decisive breakthrough in 2007. The likes of Sarfraz and Azhar need to realise how work ethics need to be taken to off-field matters as well, which in the modern day are as crucial as on-field prowess.
It is no surprise that an unfit team also struggles to keep pace in the field.
It’s been over a decade - at least - since fielding has been acknowledged to be on par with batting and bowling as a cricketing discipline for professional players. Every player has needed to excel in two of the three disciplines, i.e batting, bowling and fielding, to qualify as an international player.
Considering Pakistan’s fitness levels, which exacerbate the poor fielding skills, and the lack of genuine all-round cricketers, it’s obvious where the national side has been lacking in the recent past - especially in the limited-overs formats.
We simply do not have many cricketers who would qualify at an international level - let alone proper world class players - since not many of them have the requisite skills in two of the disciplines at par with the best of their competitors.
According to reports, those players doing well in the fitness departments will be given cash bonuses by the PCB. While incentives can help boost the players’ motivation, it’s time Pakistani cricketers realise that improving fitness levels is a basic requirement at the international level. They wouldn’t need any additional incentives to work on their batting or bowling, now would they? One would hope not.
