Lockdown set to take a toll on cricketers

The unforeseen lockdown, across the world, must be taking its toll on international cricketers. Considering that the present lot plays the sport throughout the year, living out of suitcases and sleeping on a different, unfamiliar bed every other night, staying indoors must be a new way of living. For this lot, that’s more than active twenty-four-by-seven more often than not, being with family (not friends) is something they will cherish.

By now, the support teams of many international cricket teams must have prepared and shared a regimen for their players to remain fit and not get carried away by dipping into the dont’s while in quarantine. There will be restrictions on diet and exercises which will be doled out to athletes to enable them to stay in shape till the sport resumes.

As we know, fitness is of paramount importance in modern cricket and we have seen many talents go waste thanks to their aversion for keeping up with newer regimes of remaining fit. Advanced aerobic scrutinies like the Yo-yo test are new forms of testing the fitness and endurance of players which are factors considered beyond mere art and form of a player.

Talent’s like Sanju Samson, Suresh Raina among others have had to give a miss to tours for failing this exam which has, at least in India, become a mandatory need for a player to be selected. The test, which involves the participants running back and forth between markers at a specified speed determines the fitness levels of athletes.

Since 2017, when it was first introduced in Indian cricket, the test has caught the fancy of cricket authorities in India and is fully endorsed by skipper Virat Kohli who leads from the front as far as fitness is concerned.

Flunking this assessment would mean putting cold water on whatever cricketing achievements the player may have had during the season. The unforeseen break is bound to relax a player who just may succumb to temptations and go off the grid as far as fitness requirements are concerned. Playing day in and day out can affect players and this hiatus has given them the much needed break to refresh themselves for future encounters on the field.

One does not know for how long the universe will be under a lockdown as time seems to have been standing still which makes it difficult for players and trainers to put some kind of a time-band which they can follow. Physical fitness apart, there is another important factor for them to consider which has to do with the state of their minds. When the players do come back, they will also need to be mentally strong and raring to go back on the field, fit in the body and the mind.

Coming back after a long halt is not going to be easy, especially when no one knows when cricket and the world will return to normalcy. Indian Test star, Ajinkya Rahane has stressed on mental health and said that this keeping one’s mind strong during the lockdown is also important.

During the cricket season, switching off and on during a game is an important element that has been used by many past masters. They knew how to relax in between matches and series’ to come back stronger in the next ones.

Cricket is as much a mental game as it is a physical one.

One has heard stories about many players who achieved greatness thanks to a strong mental approach. Former cricketing superstars like Sunil Gavaskar, Sir Vivian Richards, Alan Border, Shane Warne among others didn’t just work on their game but kept their state of mind at a high all the time.

Each time when one thought they were slipping from their pedestal, they came back with a memorable performance that had more to do with how they mentally dealt with the situation. They all knew when to let go and when to come back.

Fortunately for that generation, there was a period which would help them ease their minds and they knew when the time was right to start preparing mentally for an oncoming series.

For the current lot of international cricketers, this is a period of uncertainty that they will have to go through before they start sorting their cricket kit.

Unfortunately they don’t know when it will start and who they will be pitted against. While keeping physically fit should not be a major issue (wether they have in-house facilities or not) they will need to keep themselves in top shape mentally.

One assumes that the support staff that monitors their physical fitness also has the mental factor on their minds.