"Their tummies are visible; their lower are heavy and they can't move" - Misbah-ul-Haq on Pakistan players' fitness

Former Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq has questioned the fitness levels of the national team, observing that they find it difficult to move. Misbah, who has also coached Pakistan, recalled that cricketers used to push themselves towards keeping fit during his playing days.

While speaking as an analyst on a show for a local media channel, the 48-year-old threw light on the stark difference between players' fitness now and then. The retired cricketer pointed out the lack of an organized fitness regime behind such a culture.

The former captain said, as quoted by cricketpakistan.com.pk:

"Clear cut, fitness issues are visible, Waqar left four times [as coach], I left once. Players like myself, Shoaib Malik, and Younus Khan were quite into fitness, and we used to push ourselves. Those who push others out of their limitations are not considered good trainers nor good coaches.

"Their tummies are visible; their lower are heavy and they can't move. The reason behind this is there has not been a single fitness test, there is no benchmark."

The 75-Test veteran coached the Men in Green between September 2019 and September 2021, stepping down from the role just before the 2021 T20 World Cup. Waqar Younis, who also resigned alongside him, worked as a bowling coach in Misbah's regime.

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"Fitness test level during domestic season becomes a joke" - Misbah-ul-Haq

Misbah-ul-Haq. (Credits: Getty)

The former right-handed batter also feels that fitness levels in international cricket must be akin to domestic cricket, adding:

"Fitness test level during domestic season becomes a joke. We used to have arguments that we used to say that the standard used for the international level must be used for the domestic level as well. The responsible people at the domestic level always opposed us related to fitness."

Currently, Pakistan are preparing for the T20 World Cup in Australia. The Babar Azam-led side lost their first warm-up fixture against England on Monday. They will clash with Afghanistan in their last warm-up game on Wednesday, before the tournament opener against India on Sunday.