NEW DELHI: Flustered by the frequent injury breakdowns of players in the Indian team, the medical team at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru is looking to resurrect its fitness programme. TOI understands that the CoE is finally working on standardising base fitness parameters after it emerged that the non-definitive customised fitness tests for players were identified as a core reason for the drop in the overall fitness standards.The Indian team went through a change in fitness testing drills after Adrian Leroux replaced Soham Desai as the strength and conditioning coach last year. It is learnt that the BCCI medical team, which includes the CoE and the Indian team, has struggled to work in sync to assess the fitness of players. Since Leroux took over, it was decided that the Bronco test would be the primary test to judge fitness instead of the Yo-Yo test.The Bronco test, which is a more agility driven test, didn’t have a base parameter till now. TOI has learnt that the BCCI medical team has rolled out a figure of 5.15-5.20 minutes as a base figure to complete the assorted drills to be declared fit enough to be selected after the debacle in white-ball tour of Ireland and England. Earlier, the BCCI had set 16.5 as a marker to clear the basic Yo-Yo test. The CoE has also set 9-10 minute mark to complete the 2 km running test which is known as the 2K test.
BCCI pulls up lacklustre fitness tests
“The Indian players are not used to the Bronco test. Over the last year, the CoE had set different base parameters for players. It has now emerged that certain senior players were given much comfortable targets to meet to clear fitness tests. The CoE staff had also cleared players like Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy to make sure it was delivering players according to team management’s needs,” a BCCI source told TOI.TOI has learnt that the team management and BCCI, led by secretary Devajit Saikia, has questioned Team India physio Kamlesh Jain for the repeated breakdowns and overall dip in the fitness standards. The team management is also not happy with players cramping so frequently even in the favourable English weather.“Kamlesh has been told that he shouldn’t worry about any player’s stature and flag anything that he doesn’t find satisfactory. It has been seen that the mobility of some of the players in the field has been questionable. Senior batters are struggling to push their running between the wickets as they bat longer. The number of slow fielders has increased,” the source said.
Communication breakdown
It has been observed that regular India players have not been prepared for the new fitness drills. For instance, someone like Mohammed Siraj was recently caught off guard by the sudden fitness tests at CoE before leaving for Sri Lanka.“It is only now that contracted players have been handed the base parameters of the new tests. The Test regulars were caught off guard by the programme given to them at CoE. The players who are not part of the Test team are now starting to work according to the base parameter,” the source said. The CoE failed to get Jasprit Bumrah ready despite the selectors and the team management were assured that he would be fit for the first Test in Sri Lanka on Aug 15.In the case of Harshit Rana, which has been an embarrassment for the CoE since he had just recovered from a knee injury, there was no clear messaging about the desired fitness levels. TOI understands that Rana had suffered severe cramps and not any injury when he was sent back to the CoE from England after the third T20I. It was cited that he was overweight.“The Indian team management flagged that he was overweight by four kgs. The CoE should have been much more vigilant. He has been now told by CoE staff that his weight can’t exceed 96 kgs. He is now 94 kgs and is expected to be cleared next week. But he was 97 kgs when he was cleared to be picked for the Indian team for the UK tour,” the source said.
Injury prevention lost priority
The Indian team management had finally got it right when it managed to play three consecutive ICC events — the 2023 ODI World Cup, 2024 T20 World Cup and 2025 Champions Trophy — with all resources available. Only Hardik Pandya suffered an injury after twisting his ankle in the 2023 World Cup. BCCI had devised an impeccable injury management programme and customised for each player.TOI understands that the fitness programmes have drifted away from prevention to a more rigorous approach. “Now, a player at CoE is made to take a 2K test and Bronco test more frequently besides the Yo-Yo test which burns out players. Earlier, it was about maintaining certain fitness marks for players without burning them out with fitness regimes. Yo-Yo tests were designed to be taken in six months or if a player is coming back from injury. The other management had made notes of pressure points for each player and accordingly regulated the workload. Now, the players are just pushed to do extreme fitness programmes,” the source claimed.
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