According to reports, six Indian players – Ishan Kishan, Rahul Tewatia, Sanju Samson, Nitish Rana, Siddharth Kaul and Jaydev Unadkat – failed to clear the new fitness test. That is the one that was devised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). They will be taking the test – that involves a 2-km run in a stipulated time – again, BCCI confirmed.
With the ODI and T20I series against England only weeks away, the BCCI conducted the first drill of the newly devised 2km fitness test over 20 players. The test as the BCCI claimed would set a benchmark for the players. That was given the amount of cricket the Indian players have and will be playing. It will be leading to the T20 World Cup at home later this year.
Watch: Epic Babar Azam Runout Goes Viral
However, according to a BCCI source, the test is quite straining and the players took time to adapt. The six who failed the test will get a chance to attempt again.
What The Source Further Went On To Tell The Times Of India About The Fitness Of The Players And The BCCI Test?
“Since this is a new type of a fitness test, they will all get a second chance to clear it at a fresh date, after some gap. If they fail to clear it, then it puts their selection for the forthcoming white-ball series comprising five T20Is and three ODIs against England at home in doubt.”
The source further added that the test will examine the core fitness of a player. The yo-yo test has also been widely accepted on the board. At the end of the day, the team needs to be fitter. That is the focus of these tests. The management wants to improve the overall fitness of the players.
“Few fitness tests were conducted for around 20-odd cricketers who are in the reckoning for the limited-overs series against England at home. It is for the T20 World Cup in India later this year. Among these tests was the now-famous yo-yo test and the new ‘2km run’ fitness test.”
What Next For The Players; Will They Be Released From Their Contracts?
However, the difficulty levels vary from the role of a player. Bowlers have to be faster than the batsmen and wicketkeeper. So things are rather complicated but at the end of the day, they make sense.
The Source Said, “In this test, a batsman, wicketkeeper, or a spinner has to complete the two-kilometre distance in eight minutes and 30 seconds, while for a fast bowler, the benchmark is eight minutes and 15 seconds. Six of the players failed to clear these tests. Some players barely managed to complete the run.”
The report also adds that that skipper Virat Kohli and head coach Ravi Shastri have given a thumbs up to the test. The Indian Test side is set to play four more matches against England. One of those is already played out of the two in Chepauk. The other two will be later played (post the second match) in Ahmedabad.
After losing the first match comprehensively, they will want to turn things around. Hopefully, the fitness test by the BCCI does some wonders for the team fitness ahead of the T20 World Cup this year. It will be interesting to see how many more players fail this test. That could show the actual level of fitness that this team has.
