To keep them injury-free is the first challenge: Shanker Basu on fast bowlers' fitness

When you play a sport, your gym sessions are an integral part of it and it is important that you slog with everything in the gym to come out stronger when you take the field. In the latest video of RCB Bold Diaries, the strength and conditioning coach of RCB, Shanker Basu opened up about what are the challenges that he faces while training various departments of the team.

He would talk about how training pacers is an entirely different ball game as it needs a totally different workout schedule, keeping in mind how fast bowlers are very susceptible to injuries. Talking about his inclination towards fast bowlers, he would say, “I love training fast bowlers because the challenges are plenty. Fast bowling itself is a highly injury-related sport. If you would look at any stat or any history, fast bowlers get the maximum number of injuries.”

He would also say about his role in honing the expressmen of the RCB unit, citing, “For me, as a trainer, as a strength and conditioning coach, to keep them injury-free is the first challenge. On top of that, we need to work on our performance training also. So that is a double whammy there.”

Shanker Basu would then shift his focus towards training the batters and spinners. He would say, “In regards to batters and spinners, it is slightly different. We can still get away with a lot of things. They can have a good training session in the ground still they can go full swing in the gym but a fast bowler can never do that.”

Basu would conclude by talking about the points of concern for the wicket-keepers, quoting, “Wicket-keepers are very susceptible to hamstring and back injuries. They do have a strong back and hamstring but nevertheless as they grow older, this can be a challenge. My focus is to keep their back and hamstring in good shape.”