The debate over new fitness test marking for the availability in the National Cricket League (NCL) is going on as the cricketers outside of the national team remained concerned by it.
The fitness test is normally done through the beep Test which is a multi-stage fitness test used to measure cardiovascular fitness and maximum oxygen uptake. It is commonly used by coaches and trainers to measure athlete fitness, report agencies.
Bangladesh Cricket Board recently have instructed that cricketers of the 30-member preliminary squad of respective divisions for the upcoming NCL will have to get 11 in the beep test if they want to be included in the 18-member squad that will take part in the NCL.
The new marking system is said to be the brainchild of High-Performance Unit head coach Simon Helmut as he made the proposal to the tournament committee for the competition, scheduled to start from October 7.
Chief selector Minhajul Abedin had approved the idea and in the process it was granted for execution.
While the national players have no problem in it, the players outside of the national team said that they don’t have the facilities like the national players to train all the year round and keep them fit.
Most of the players get training facilities just ahead of the NCL or any other tournament and so it becomes tougher for them to pass the new fitness test marking.
Last year the BCB gives a standard of 9 in beep test which increased to 11 in this year and it therefore sparks the debate.
But Arafat Sunny, the former national player and a known face in domestic cricket league believes the board will give them second chance if they couldn’t pass in the test.
“Last year when someone couldn’t cross the hurdle of 9, they were given second chance. So I believe this year also the board will give us same opportunity,” Arafat Sunny said.
The beep test for the players to make them available in the upcoming NCL will be held in October 1, Sunny said.
Arafat sunny who is out the national side for the last 4 years after an impressive debut was believed to be the proper back-up for Shakib Al Hasan but faded away as the time passes.
“Match fitness and beep test are two different things altogether,” said Arafat Sunny while talking to the journalist at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
He also pointed out that some can be very good at indoor training and some good at physical training. He said every cricketer is very professional these days and every cricketer has own personal fitness regime during the offseason.
Sunny said he was very confused about the fitness test result, “I still do not know. If anybody gets 11 he is good and if he does not 11 he is bad I cannot say that.’’
Fast bowler Mohammad Sharif, who is also a regular face in NCL after being discarded from the national team, was more critical in his assessment.
“They said that we should have to make in 11 in beep test. Now suppose if one gets 14 but he couldn’t play the league due to match fitness, then what will be?
There was many instance that a player get 8 or 9 in beep test but scored double hundred and took 10 wickets in the original match,” he said, adding that the beep test never could prove anyone else as a fit player.
