KARACHI: Pakistan legend Wasim Akram on Saturday emphasised the need for extensive training for young guns to maintain fitness if they aspire to follow path of international cricket.

Addressing a media conference at the National Stadium during launch of a specialised camp for fast bowlers, the great left-armer, who grabbed a record 414 Test and 502 ODI wickets during a distinguished career from 1984 until 2003, said fast bowling is an art which requires sheer hard work.

“Times have changed a lot from the days when we used to play. These days there’s obviously too much cricket played and fast bowlers are more prone to injuries now than in our era,” the 49-year-old former national skipper told reporters. “At the same time I must say the youngsters nowadays don’t train as much we used to do. That’s why you see a vast number of injuries to pace bowlers in the modern age.”

Accompanied at the briefing by Mohammad Akram, the head coach of the National Cricket Academy (NCA) and the chief coordinator of the 13-day camp here, Wasim urged the upcoming pacemen to pay more attention to their fitness.

“This is something purely up to the individuals themselves. Without peak fitness it is virtually to expect someone to bowl fast and if the guy is unable to properly look after himself then it is pointless for him to be bowling quick,” he pointed out.

“Over a period of time I’ve seen many great fast bowlers who were tremendous athletes. Just look at Dale Steyn and his physical shape. He looks so slim and very fit. That is the key reason for him to be so successful in international cricket,” Wasim said of the South African speedster who took his 400th wicket during the ongoing final Test against Bangladesh in Dhaka.”

“Unfortunately, [lack of] fitness is a major factor in our cricket due to several reasons. One of them is that they don’t give importance to this aspect.”

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has invited 16 fast bowlers, some of whom were picked after trials held at Multan, Sukkur and Peshawar, while four more will be added to the camp at the conclusion of open trials in Quetta and Mirpur.

Among the invitees is Ahmed Jamal, the gangling fast bowler who during the first camp held in April 2013 at Karachi won Rs1 million on offer for bowling the quickest ball which was then recorded at 143kph.

On the opening day, the bowlers present at the camp underwent initial assessment with Wasim and Akram watching them in action.

Wasim, who in the 1990s formed the famed deadly new-ball partnership with Waqar Younis, the current head coach of the national side, said he was excited at the prospect of training the young pacers for the second time and looked forward to help out them.

“This is very exciting for me. I’m available for any fast bowler with a will to improve. I’m glad the PCB has given the task to get involved in something like this once again. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of training them the last time the specialised camp was organised here two years ago,” the legendary cricketer stressed.

“And even this will be a short camp, I’m sure the youngsters will learn a great deal because there’s I see tremendous passion for bowling quick in Pakistan. The future has always been bright since there is dearth of talent and the love for the game simply unbelievable.”

Wasim observed that run-up is the key element for all pacemen. “Without a proper run-up it is very difficult to get the rhythm going. I’m going to pay a lot of attention during the initial stages of this camp because most young bowlers tend to have faulty run-ups and never try to correct themselves,” Wasim remarked. “If the run-up is perfect then it becomes quite easy to bowl, and at the same time it also minimises the fear of injury.”

Akram, meanwhile, told the briefing that the task for the PCB was difficult to pick the bowlers for the camp.

“Believe me, the look in the eyes of those fast bowlers told a different story altogether. There is great untapped talent in the far-flung remote areas and it became quite a challenge for us to pick a limited number of them for the camp,” the NCA head coach said. “I’m sure with a legend [Wasim Akram] in action here, the next 13 days will be very exciting for all of us.”

Published in Dawn, August 2nd, 2015

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