HYDERABAD: With the new domestic season set to commence soon, the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) has announced a fitness assessment and camp recently for all the age groups, including the men’s senior category.The Ranji Trophy season 2026-27 is set to begin on October 11, and the senior men’s team hopefuls are going through the camp that began on August 15 and runs till August 31.The focus of the camp is not just on cricketing skills, but making fitness a non-negotiable demand of modern-day cricket.Even the cricketers have realised its importance and now most players have a personal trainer and have made fitness a part of their life, especially during the off- season.Kaneshkk Naidu, a former first-class cricketer who now trains several Hyderabad players, and is a consultant with fitness and sports performance centre Kanhustle, said that the current crop of cricketers are fully aware of the importance of fitness.“Earlier, fitness was just a part of cricket. Now, it’s a key ingredient. If you are not fit, you won’t survive, with three formats, non-stop travel and fielding standards. The fitter you are, the longer you bat, the faster you bowl, the sharper you field,” says Kaneshkk.HCA’s inaugural TG20 tournament saw 24 cricketers trained by Kaneshkk play for different outfits.“To have 24 members represent us at this level is a proud moment. Most of them put up a strong performance which shows the impact of structured coaching and motivation,” he added.Hyderabad’s CV Milind says fitness is crucial for a fast bowler like him.“Fitness for me plays a very important role as I am a fast bowler and also a lower middle order batsman and I field as well. So the thinking is I want to be fit enough in all three departments so that I can do close to whatever I want to do whenever I play,” said Milind.“I was getting injured regularly three years ago but with proper strength and conditioning, I played all matches of all formats in 2023-24. It has really helped me keep my fitness standards up to the required level,” he revealed.
