Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
India’s leading centrally contracted cricketers gathered at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru on Saturday to undergo pre-season fitness assessments, barely two days after the demanding two-Test tour of Sri Lanka came to an end.
Despite spending three intense days on the field during the series, several members of the Test squad turned up to complete their fitness requirements as the team prepares for a packed eight-month schedule that will eventually lead into the 2027 Indian Premier League.
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Senior all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant and opener Yashasvi Jaiswal were among those present. T20I captain Shreyas Iyer also took part, alongside Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson and Chennai Super Kings captain Ruturaj Gaikwad.
Players are required to undergo a range of assessments, including the Bronco Test, a 2km run and the Yo-Yo test. The programme also features cricket-specific exercises, such as running between the wickets.
Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and Nitish Kumar Reddy are yet to take the tests as they continue their rehabilitation and will do so once they are cleared to return to full fitness. Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna, meanwhile, have been given time off from the drills after their heavy workloads in the consecutive Tests against Sri Lanka.
There was positive news on the injury front for Prince Yadav, who has recovered from the hamstring issue he suffered during India’s tour of the UK and is available for selection again.
India’s home season gets underway in September with an unusual arrangement, a three-match T20I series against Afghanistan in New Delhi that has been described as an away assignment on home soil.
The calendar will then see India’s first-choice T20I squad travel to Japan for the Asian Games, while a separate group of white-ball specialists takes on the West Indies in a home series at the same time. The domestic schedule will also include an India A series against Australia A in Puducherry, scheduled from the final week of September until the second week of October.
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SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
