Former Pakistan opener, Salman Butt has taken a dig at Indian cricketers and suggested that some of the players are quite unfit. Speaking on his Youtube channel after the first T20I between India and Australia, Butt opined that some Asian teams are also ahead of India in terms of fitness. As per the former Pakistan opener, the Indian cricketers need to work hard on their fitness.
In the video on his YouTube channel, Salman Butt said, “Indian players are the highest-paid cricketers in the world. They play the maximum number of matches. You tell me why are they not the fittest? If we compare their body structure, teams like South Africa, Australia and England are much better. I would even say some Asian teams are ahead of India. Some Indian players are overweight. I think they need to work on that because they are brilliant cricketers.”
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He further added, “I don’t know if others will talk about this or not, but in my view, Team India’s fitness is not ideal. Some experienced players are not at that level where they should be in terms of fielding. Virat Kohli has set an example for others in fitness. Ravindra Jadeja, Hardik Pandya are so fit. There are players like Rohit Sharma, even KL Rahul looked lethargic today, you know, Rishabh Pant. If they become fit, they will become more dangerous cricketers.”
The Indian cricketers are often been touted as some of the fittest cricketers in world cricket. It is to be noted that the BCCI has set minimum fitness standards for selection and those who flunk the test are dropped from the national squad. Hence, it can’t be said that the players are overweight or unfit.
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However, at the same time, one has to agree that other teams could be fitter than India but no Indian player can make it to the national squad without achieving the desired level of fitness. Talking of the India-Australia T20I, the Men in Blue failed to defend a big target of 209. The bowlers struggled hugely and barring Axar Patel, every other bowler went for more than 10 runs per over. The 2nd T20I of the series will be played in Nagpur on September 23.
