PCB to conduct players’ fitness tests next week

KARACHI: Pakistan’s cricket authorities will carry out a series of fitness tests of the country’s leading players early next week.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) announced on Friday that fourth term fitness tests of the centrally contracted players will be held at the National Cricket Academy on January 6 and 7.

All the available centrally contracted players will attend the two-day testing, which is aligned to their contracts. Wahab Riaz, Mohammad Amir and Shadab Khan, who will be occupied with their commitments in the Bangladesh Premier League, will undergo the tests on 20 and 21 January.

The fitness tests, to be conducted by Yasir Malik, the strength and conditioning coach of the Pakistan national men’s team, will cover five major areas, namely fat analysis, strength, endurance, speed endurance and cross-fit, and will carry equal weightage.

A player failing to meet the minimum fitness requirements will be fined 15 per cent of his monthly retainer, which will remain effective until such time he achieves the minimum fitness standards. Player failing consecutive tests will risk the chances of retaining his central contract category and may face demotion.

“There has always been an emphasis on the monitoring of players’ fitness levels. This time we have decided to enforce penalties, which is in accordance with the contracts, as part of our objective to make the players more accountable and responsible for maintaining high fitness standards throughout the year, which is one of the basic requirements any professional athlete,” said Zakir Khan, PCB’s Director, International Cricket.

“All the players were informed last month of the PCB’s expectations and potential sanctions in the scenario of failures.

“These fitness tests will not be limited to the centrally contracted players, but will trickle down to the six Cricket Association teams. Their tests will be conducted by their respective coaches and trainers as per their own schedules and players failing to pass fitness tests will jeopardise their chances of featuring in the Pakistan Cup One-Day Tournament to be held from 25 March to 19 April.”

Centrally contracted players:

Category A – Babar Azam (Central Punjab), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Sindh) and Yasir Shah (Balochistan)

Category B – Asad Shafiq (Sindh), Azhar Ali (Central Punjab), Haris Sohail (Balochistan), Imam-ul-Haq (Balochistan), Mohammad Abbas (Southern Punjab), Shadab Khan (Northern), Shaheen Shah Afridi (Northern) and Wahab Riaz (Southern Punjab)

Category C – Abid Ali (Sindh), Hasan Ali (Central Punjab), Fakhar Zaman (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Imad Wasim (Northern), Mohammad Amir (Northern), Mohammad Rizwan (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), Shan Masood (Southern Punjab) and Usman Shinwari (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa).