Board to focus on fitness to give UAE cricketers a boost

Dubai The Emirates Cricket Board is focusing on fitness as a means to boost the UAE cricketers' performance in international tournaments and also lift the standard in domestic cricket.

Aaqib Javed, the newly appointed coach of the UAE team, under the guidance of Dilawar Mani, the chief executive officer of the ECB, has visited almost all the cricket academies in the UAE. He also held talks with all the academy coaches on the various aspects of coaching.

Speaking to Gulf News, the cricket coaches of some of the academies that Javed visited said the initiative by the ECB is a good move in the right direction.

"It was nice to have Javed visit our academy and identify talent, look at our facilities and also give a lecture on what we should focus on apart from teaching the players the mere techniques of the game," remarked Sidath Tennekoon, one of the coaches of the Desert Cubs Cricket Academy, which finished runners up in the recent Cricket for Care Inter Academy cricket tournament organised by the Dubai Cricket Council.

Javed was accompanied by UAE cricket team physiotherapist Chitrala Sudhakar and ECB assistant coach Hyder Ali.

In for a treat

Javed also visited the Young Talents Cricket Academy facilities in Sharjah as well as Dubai. "Our young cricketers were in for a treat to have Javed meet them and talk to them. They only knew Javed as the man who achieved a hat-trick when he was just 19 years old and as a member of the 1992 Pakistan World Cup winning team. Javed was impressed with the facilities and stressed on the need for all-round development of a player. He has also asked us to notify about the talented players in the academy."

Javed is in consultation with UAE team physiotherapist Sudhakar on giving a boost to fitness among cricketers after also visiting the G Force Academy, the winners of the Inter Academy tournament, Maxtalent and Sharjah Cricket Academy.

"During the visit Javed has made it very clear to all academy coaches that everyone has to drill in the message that if anyone wants to be a cricketer he has to be fit. He [said] the difference between a common man and a cricketer has to be his superior fitness," said Sudhakar.

Endurance

Following the discussion between Sudhakar and Javed, a programme titled circuit training has been introduced into practice sessions. "The half an hour circuit training is a combination of leg strengthening, speed endurance and shoulder strengthening exercises. Shoulder strengthening is meant at being able to throw the ball quicker as a fielder and also for the bowlers. Speed endurance with focus on leg strengthening means to excel in running between the wickets, footwork and for a bowler's take off and landing while bowling," said Sudhakar, who has also incorporated hurdle training from athletics for the Under-19 cricketers.

To counter the biggest player hurdle of having to train after a long day's work, all academies have been instructed on the importance of warming up. "Enough time for recovery and rest after training is also important... all cricketers have been asked to keep off oily food and take in more carbohydrates," said Sudhakar.