Are we fit to lead the world? (1 November 1998)

1 November 1998

Are we fit to lead the world?

By Reg Scarlett

Over the last decade, a cricketer's life has changed beyond recognition.

With nine countries now playing Tests, fixtures have obviously increased. But it is the One-day International which has really done most to increase the cricketer's workload.

At the highest level, cricketers can no longer play and get fit. There is a famous English football club manager who would always say to his players that they are no use to the team when they have to stay off the field.

"I have known no one to score a goal," he would say, "sitting on the bench."

That applies as well in the cricketing context-no one can score a run or take a wicket sitting in the pavilion.

Which explains why nowadays, to enable them to cope with the demands of the modern game, first-class cricket teams worldwide all undergo a rigorous fitness regime.

Weight training, anaerobic and aerobic exercises, stamina, endurance, agility and flexibility programmes are all part of the basic training fare for the cricketer of today.

It took a long time but cricket has now embraced what modern science has to offer sport. Biomechanics, sports psychology, the importance of good nutrition have all become an integral part of the preparation for playing the game at high levels.

The WICB have not been left behind in this area. A fitness and conditioning programme has been instituted on behalf of the Board by Dr Sam Headley, Ph.D, a former Barbados youth player now Assistant Professor in Movement Sciences and Exercise Physiology at Springfield College in Massachusetts, USA.

With the assistance of long-standing trainer Denis Waight and Ronald Rogers, Dr Headley carried out a fitness and conditioning evaluation on 34 recent and current Test and 'A' team players.

The format requires a further evaluation three months after the first, then a third after a further three-month period. That completed, personal fitness standards are to be established for every player on the programme.

It is interesting to note that the second set of results of all the players involved in the current programme who have already undergone their second evaluation showed marked improvement over the first. In a couple of cases, the results were simply unbelievable.

It is proposed to extend this fitness programme throughout the region to include members of ALL representative squads from Under-15 upwards. Already too a segment in the WICB courses for coaches is devoted exclusively to this element of cricket training.

But our cricket training and preparation should not be left to depend on the vagaries of the weather. We must make it possible to accommodate year-round day/night cricket activities at several venues in the West Indies, as is already the case in many of the other cricketing nations.

We need to follow their lead. We must establish in the West Indies a multi-sport complex with indoor facilities including easy access to a lecture room, video room, treatment room and a fitness centre. That will allow for in-depth cricket training in nets, coaching courses and the like to take place uninterrupted.

And then we can look forward confidently to regaining our rightful place on top of the cricketing world.

Reg Scarlett is Director of Coaching for the WICB.

Source :: The Trinidad Express (https://www.trinidad.net/express/)