The newly appointed vice-captain of the Pakistan team in the longest format of the game has made a huge comment on how the fitness level of the team has dropped in the last few months. Compared to the other notable sides in the world, the Men in Green hasn’t been up to the mark in terms of fitness across the formats, and that has made their lives difficult in all situations.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) left no stone unturned in increasing the fitness level of the national players with different drills and gym sessions with the army before the start of the recent T20 World Cup 2024, where they made a group stage exit in the United States of America (USA).
The fans and former players of the team have also questioned the fitness level of their captain, Babar Azam, and the wicket-keeper batter, Azam Khan, who was part of the T20 World Cup squad. They have made various preparations regarding fitness improvement constantly, but are yet to enjoy the results.
“He didn’t have any answer, this is unprofessionalism”- Former Pakistan Captain
The newly made vice-captain of the Pakistan side, Saud Shakeel, has acknowledged the issue, besides addressing that reaching the peak level of fitness will be the biggest priority in the new set-up.
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“To be honest, the fitness levels of some of our players went down in the last couple of months, and they accepted it too. We’re currently working hard on our fitness levels, and we are hoping to make it better in the future as well.” The 28-year-old has expressed to Cricket Pakistan ahead of their Test series against Bangladesh.
The Karachi-born has notched up 967 runs in just ten games of the red-ball format at an average of over 60 with a strike rate of 45.82, besides celebrating six fifties and a couple of centuries, with the best score of an unbeaten 208-run knock.
One of the biggest highlights of his career, and that too at the beginning has been how the management has trusted Shakeel to offer him the promotion to the vice-captaincy position. The middle-order batter is a vital member of the batting department, especially in the longest format of the game.
The youngster touched on how honored he was upon getting the responsibility of being the vice-captain of the side.
“I have always enjoyed captaincy, and I am honored that I am given the responsibility of being the vice-captain of the Pakistan Test side. I have always tried to ensure that the runs I score benefit the team’s cause.” Saud Shakeel told Cricket Pakistan.
Regarding the fitness issues of the national side, the former captain Mohammad Hafeez also displayed his disappointment towards the players.
Especially, he pointed out Azam Khan, as he was surprised how the latter’s running ability wasn’t up to the mark compared to his teammates as he didn’t have any improvements in body weight and fat level.
“After allotting him a 6-week program, when Azam Khan appeared, he was still at the same body weight and body fat level as he was 6 weeks prior.” The former all-rounder shaded light on a local news channel. “His running ability was also twice as low as the rest of the team. If the rest of the team could cover 2 kilometers in 10 minutes, Azam Khan could only do it in 20 minutes.”
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“So, I went to talk to him and asked him why he didn’t follow the plan and role given to him. He didn’t have any answer, saying he tried his best but couldn’t. This is unprofessionalism.” Hafeez concluded.
The opening Test for Pakistan against Bangladesh will take place on August 21 at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium.