talk about cricket fitness...

shared by straight point on Monday, October 11, 2010

this is what murali vijay said after the end of day's play... after scoring a well deserved hundred...

"It was really special knock for me. I would like to dedicate this to my mom. It was a dream come true for me to play with Sachin. I was just focused on each ball and not try to think too far ahead. In that regard Sachin paaji helped me a lot. He gave me pep-talks through the day. After the tea I got tired; I didn't want to give my wicket away but ended up playing a bad shot. I am trying to just keep things simple and work on my basics; whenever I get my opportunities I want to do well."

this is a significant statement coming from a youngster of about 26 years of age just into international cricket... who batted alongside the veteran of 21 years of almost non-stop international cricket at the age of more than 37 year... and still batting as strong and as relaxed as if he has just come to crease... taking quick singles or twos with youngsters like murali... raina.... and later with dhoni... during his marathon innings of 190+

yes... age is just a number... right murali...?

30 comments:

Balajhi said...

That's the major difference Sachin brings with his game. It's not just physical fitness but the mental fitness that lets down many batsmen but not Sachin. You may be talented and know to play all shots in the book but the one who tirelessly play all of them as long as required / possible will be the champion. The current generation brought up on T20 staple food will find it difficult last a day of test match mentally. This will be the biggest gap to fill when the Dravid / Sachin / Laxman leave the game. Batsman playing 5 sessions for a double century may come to passe.

straight point said...

The current generation brought up on T20 staple food will find it difficult last a day of test match mentally. This will be the biggest gap to fill when the Dravid / Sachin / Laxman leave the game.

could not agree more with you bala...

its one thing to score runs... and its another to keep it scoring... for hours and still have the energy to not only run for self but for partner... when every time you come to crease it is expected you will bail out the team... like sachin has done in this game... and previous game when he scored 98 and 38... and still had the energy to score 190+ after the exhausting effort and test match...

take a bow to mental toughness... fitness... :)

Anonymous said...

I think it was just mental tiredness. Getting to your first test ton can be exhausting emotionally. You have to remember Vijay's 1 of our best fielders. You cant do that by being unfit physically. Also, despite this 100 Gambhir will probably reclaim his spot. He was under some pressure to make the oppurtunity count and show he had what it takes.
Sachin was perfection today.

straight point said...

this is exactly what i wanted to highlight anon... that there is physical fitness and then there is mental fitness... :)

if the first ton was exhaisting for murali what about the man who whenever comes in find india almost in spot of bother and take it home... like after the thrilling finale in mohali...

Jaunty Quicksand said...

Fitness has a mental component to it, too. Vijay has the stamina but may not know how to pace himself just yet. SRT has done this hundreds of times and knows what he can do.

Give Vijay a few more innings and now that the never-scored-a-century bugbear has been removed, I am sure he'll do better.

By the way, minor nitpicking. His name is Vijay not Murali. Murali is his father's name, Vijay is his.

straight point said...

absolutely fair assessment JQ... :)

in fact i tweeted on similar lines earlier... about getting the monkey of first test century off his chest...

regarding his name... i know that but somehow i always call him murali... may it has got nice ring to it... if you know what i mean... ;)

Unknown said...

Only time will tell if this knock from Vijay will help him strengthen his mind and teach him a few things about scoring the big knocks...

But I'll tell you what I found the most satisfying about Vijay's knock. That smile of ultimate satisfaction on scoring the Test ton, that sigh of relief as he bent down to hug SRT, and that moment when he almost wanted to collapse his head onto SRT's shoulder... it was so good to see one of the "IPL Star" from the younger generation find so much joy and delight in a Test ton. Really warms your heart, doesn't it?

straight point said...

very beautifully put shri... :)

specially the 'ipl star' bit... as if being successful in ipl is sin...

but i am sure this knock will put everything in prospective to murali ... what was more exhausting that century in ipl or this in tests...

Golandaaz said...

T20 requires strength and nimble feet, like a sprint. Tests require endurance and mental toughness like a Marathon.

I would not say one is better than the other. Usain Bolt is no less an athlete than a Kenyan marathoner.

I am keen to see how cricketers train to be champions in both formats. One scenario is that some seek to be sprinters while others seek to be marathoners. That way both formats of the game will be excelled at

Vijay is only conceding that he is not a marathoner yet. It is also unwise to conclude that Sachin was not tired. He probably was but knew how to keep running while he was still tired.

Govind Raj said...

To give credit where it is due, I expected Vijay to play his favorite pull shots once he got his 100 and get out soon.

Most of the maiden centuries are small 100s. Very few batsmen grind after the glory. So Vijay did well for himself and fell playing a decent ball.

The 100th run came with a lot of pressure for Vijay. The Aussies really built up the fortress around him and peppered him with some short stuff to trap him. So he definitely came out with flying colors.

How much more can we write about Tendulkar ? He is becoming like the 1980s Russian Pole Vault Star Sergei Bubka. He has only one rival; Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar. He can break only one man's records; His Own :-)

elegantstroke said...

I've seen enough of Tendulkar's career through the last 20 years to know how he plays and what he likes to play to spin. "I'm going to have my individual plans against those guys and if they don't work I've definitely got plan B and plan C to go from there. - Nathan Hauritz before start of the 2 tests

I'm sure he had enough time to go through all his plans. :) As usual, Sachin replies in a punching fashion with the bat.

Kartikeya Date said...

I think Bala makes a fine point in the first comment. I would add that this mental fitness is dependent on several things - being used to this level of contest, which Tendulkar is used to, but Murali Vijay less so.

Vijay's probably never faced so much persistent short pitched bowling in any innings he's played, certainly not in the Ranji Trophy. Johnson and Hilfenhaus are also a yard quicker than the average Ranji bowler.

All these things add up and test a player's mental fitness. It's something that can only come from long experience.

Kartikeya Date said...

One of the best parts of the innings was how Vijay changed his approach against Hauritz. I think he learnt this from watching Tendulkar.

Tendulkar played for keeps in the afternoon session, playing out a large number of deliveries, almost as though he had decided that staying unbeaten at Tea time was worth sacrificing 20 runs for. Vijay, early in his innings seemed intent on absolutely murdering Hauritz, but calmed down.

That was a good sign. These were easy batting conditions and a modest attack. And Tendulkar must have helped for sure. But even so, it's not easy to bat for 6 hours in a Test.

straight point said...

gol... as i said i don't find ipl success is sin as has been proclaimed... provided the player (who also plays in tests) keeps the prospective right...

this innings of murali vijay will go a long way for him to learn when to keep those shots safely in the armory and when to unleash...

straight point said...

govid this is where the experience of sachin stepped in... but even the best of advises can fall to deaf ears or not easy to put on practice bit full kudos to him to stuck to the guns...

this innings would have taught him is that how one builds an innings when you are not getting deliveries where you can score off... and the ball in not landing in your favorite areas... and when to play and not play strokes... which is far better than 100 net sessions...

straight point said...

es... and he has been doing this for past 21 years non stop... :)

straight point said...

K... exactly the point of post...

vijay would have learned a long innings is just not about the physical fitness but lots of it is mental too... the discipline required when opposition is coming relentlessly at you... putting you in uncomfortable positions... and how to cope with it... when the temptation is just to play the shot to get out of it...

no wonder he thanked sachin at the end of it... for all the world of experience was watching and guiding him from just 22 yards... :)

Unknown said...

SP, I never intended to say that I consider success in IPL as a sin. But what I do consider to be a sin is success ONLY in IPL.

If anything, SRT was a bigger "IPL Star" than Murali Vijay in 2010. But SRT has been a star in whatever cricket he has played. And that is why it was extremely satisfying to see young Vijay grow out of the tag of "IPL Star" and do himself good in Test cricket... and then value it as much!

What worries me is the fact that for many young and aspiring cricketers, IPL is becoming the limit. They don't want to step up, go higher, perform out of their skins and be a Test Star for India. What happened to the old saying that sky is the limit!?

If IPL is the sky for the upcoming young cricketers, then the sky if falling apart (pun very much intended)!

straight point said...

I never intended to say that I consider success in IPL as a sin. But what I do consider to be a sin is success ONLY in IPL.

i don't have problem with a player shining only in ipl...

there are specialist T20 players like pollard and there are specialist test players... nothing wrong with it... the problem comes with when this difference start to blur... :)

Unknown said...

Oh yes, there are specialists all right! But the problem for me arises when players are termed as specialists even before they have had a try at the other formats of the game.

What makes you say Pollard is T20 specialist? He's never played a single Test for West Indies. For all you know, he could be a very good Test player. He has 3 hundreds in 20 FC games. Sehwag was a Limited Over specialist before his immense success in Tests.

That is the problem when players start considering IPL to be the limit of their ambition. Why not give the other formats a shot before drawing any conclusions?

straight point said...

shri while i am not disputing you on what you have said... but i think test call should be reserved for the proven talent in their respective first class level until unless someone is sachin but that does not happen everyday...

pollard when he has represented west indies even in odis has not shown any inclination or has given any indication that he has the temperament...

so i will go with gol's earlier comment on this issue... let there be some sprint players as well as some marathon ones... and if someone shows the inclination for a cross over like murali has it's always welcome... :)

Unknown said...

SP, I completely buy your point... these men need to show the inclination to cross over. And the thing that I lament is that fewer people are showing that inclination to cross over these days. That is why I said that the problem arises when IPL becomes the 'limit of their ambition'. And that is also why I am so delighted with Vijay's innings.

I had a feeling that Vijay was going the T20-specialist way, which would have been lamentable had it happened... since his game is quite suited to the longer version. But this innings from him showed that he wants to make it big even in the whites.

Srini said...

How many times have we seen Sachin bat with a runner?

Btw, players who got their maiden hundred with Sachin at the other end, will travel a long way :)

straight point said...

shri... at last we agreed to agree on something... :)

straight point said...

How many times have we seen Sachin bat with a runner?

speaks a volume about his fitness... isn't it... but when there were situations when he could have have one he refused coz he likes to be in control of things...

you are right... murali vijay is presenting a welcome headache to our selectors as well as gambhir... :)

Unknown said...

There's more headache now... this time to Dravid, because of Pujara. Wow, this is exciting stuff!

straight point said...

shri... how any team would love to have this headache... :)

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