Although Raydu averages 50 in one day cricket, I personally did not like him in blues. His strike rate is beyond mediocre and is in 70’s which in modern era is considered shit. We criticize Rahane so much for playing slow but Raydu is in same boat. His IPL form should not be the only factor that we should consider. I am actually happy to see Raina play.
Completely agree, Fitness should be taken very seriously especially in sports. With a fit team we can save that extra 20-30 runs in the field. I myself am not fit so its a bit hypocritical from me to say this but as a sportsperson you have to be fit. Raydu and Shami to be honest looked bloated.The Yo-Yo test has come under criticism after Samson, Shami and now Rayudu have missed the bus because of it. To be frank, I am no Kohli fan, but I think this drive towards top fitness is the right move and at the right time for Indian cricket. In a country of a billion people, you cant find a player with the same amount of skills and yet maintains top fitness? Yes Rayudu and Samson are highly skilled but if they did not give their fitness priority, who is to blame? Rayudu had enough break after the IPL final and the Yo-Yo test. Samson is a young bloke and yet he failed. Who's to blame? The players. Maybe things like this will shake up players in the system to give fitness serious thought.
Raina failed it once, and since then, he has worked tremendously hard on his fitness (he even posts lot of videos of his fitness drills) to be able to pass it now. People can work on themselves to get up there. Of all Kohli's issues, I think on fitness, Kohli has the right standards set for the team.
I really wanted to see this pace quatret in England- Shami, Bhuvi, Umesh and Ishant. Would have been just amazing to see them get the ball to talk in those conditions. I personally still don’t trust Bumrah for Tests, but as we know Kohli, Bumrah is an ultimate surety.Yeah, Yadav is quick, Bhuvi has swing but Shami when on song is a treat to watch.
I really wanted to see this pace quatret in England- Shami, Bhuvi, Umesh and Ishant. Would have been just amazing to see them get the ball to talk in those conditions. I personally still don’t trust Bumrah for Tests, but as we know Kohli, Bumrah is an ultimate surety.