Jason Gillespie: “We are not going to compromise on fitness. If you want to play for Pakistan you need to be fit and robust”
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Pakistan red-ball head coach Jason Gillespie has made it clear that there will be no compromise when it comes to fitness.
He noted that if cricketers want to make it into the national team, they will have to adhere to the fitness standards in place as the way cricket is played today demands it.
Many of the Pakistan players have been criticised for being unfit, which people believe is one of the root causes of their poor results as of late.
In order to ensure the men in green become more competitive and turn their fortunes around, Gillespie is taking a hardline stance when it comes to the impact players’ fitness levels have on their selection.
“We are not going to compromise on fitness. If you want to play for Pakistan you need to be fit and robust,” the former Australia fast bowler told respected journalist Saj Sadiq in a video posted on X, formerly known as Twitter.
The Pakistan team recently played a two-match Test series against Bangladesh and were whitewashed 2-0 despite both games being played on home soil in Rawalpindi.
Many of the national players then took part in the Champions One-Day Cup, which was a domestic 50-over competition held in Faisalabad.
Currently, Pakistan are involved in a three-Test series against England and find themselves 1-0 down after losing the first Test in Multan by an innings and 47 runs.
The second Test began on October 15 in Multan.
Pakistan Squad for 2nd and 3rd Tests against England: Shan Masood (captain), Saud Shakeel (vice-captain), Aamer Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Haseebullah Khan (wicketkeeper), Kamran Ghulam, Mehran Mumtaz, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Ali, Muhammad Hurraira, Mohammad Rizwan (wicketkeeper), Noman Ali, Saim Ayub, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Zahid Mahmood.
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