Tamim strikes 12.1
Pic: Cricfrenzy
|| CF Correspondent ||
Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal took his fitness to a new height as he earned 12.1 in beep test while he opted to check out his fitness level recently.
The beep-test score that he achieved during assessing his own fitness condition at the academy premises on Sunday marks huge improvement as far as his fitness is concerned that indicates he is keeping no stone unturned as far preparing him for the upcoming season.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board president Nazmul Hasan recently stated that they are not going to compromise an inch when it comes to fitness issues.
BCB has decided to raise the beep-test requirement at the domestic level in a bid to address the overall drop in fitness levels among Bangladesh men's players and as a result the national selectors recently instructed the first-class teams to only pick players who reach at least 11 on the test, an increase by two levels from last season when a fitness test first became mandatory.
"We have noticed that the fitness of the national players are very poor. The coach [Russell Domingo] asked, 'What sort of fitness is this? I have never seen such fitness of players in South Africa'. We cannot suddenly increase the fitness-level requirements. We cannot reach the mark of 13 points [in the beep test] or even go above that,’’ Nazmul told media regarding their stand about fitness last week adding that they have decided to raise the bar of fitness from the upcoming domestic season.
"So, there has been a decision regarding this, that if we keep the fitness acceptance levels so low in the domestic or lower-tier competitions from where the players get into the national side, then naturally the players in the national side will only score nine or ten in the beep test. Now let's see. We have taken the decision after considering everything. I think we have to improve the fitness,’’ he said.
While some of the seasoned domestic campaigners argued that it would have better if they were notified earlier regarding the beep test standard set for the upcoming season, it looked Tamim was determined to make an impact on his overall fitness knowing the importance of it to have a successful career ahead.
Earlier, Tamim was reluctant to take part in the beep test when the national team used to assess the condition of players fitness and instead he opted to take part in the 2K running test to assess his fitness level.
But this time round he seemed determined to walk the extra mile to make sure that he is hundred percent fit ahead of the upcoming season while his preparation for the tour of India will start through taking part in the National Cricket League, country’s traditional first-class tournament, beginning from September7.
However Tamim had to give a lot to raise his fitness standard and according to some if his close associates he worked heavily in the recent past as he opted for a break from national duty during the just concluded one-match Test series against Afghanistan and following tri-nation that involved Zimbabwe as the third team.
The left-handed opener had lost five kg weight by taking part in the rigorous fitness regime in Bangkok coupled by maintain a strict diet though he is now used with the carb-free diet that he is maintaining for quite some time now.
According to Tamim his inspiration to have a proper chart to maintain high-scale fitness comes from seeing Indian skipper Virat Kohli and his team mates Mushfiqur Rahim while his aspiration to develop his fitness came since the 2015 World Cup when former head coach Chandika Hathurusingha raised the fitness issue and asked him to focus on his fitness.
