Rahul Dravid and India U-19 team management say no, no to Yo-Yo test for junior players

India U-19 coach Rahul Dravid and team management's reservations about Yo-Yo Test forced BCCI to not make it mandatory for juniors.

Rahul Dravid, Rahul Dravid India, Yo-Yo test, Asia Youth Cup, India A tour of England 2018, sports news, cricket, Indian Express

Rahul Dravid wants more emphasis on skill in junior cricket. (Source: Express Archive)

While the Indian cricket board wants to extend the Yo-Yo test to the U-19 team, who are touring Malaysia for the Asia Youth Cup next week, it’s learnt that the junior team’s management and coach Rahul Dravid have reservations about it. This has resulted in the Yo-Yo test not being made mandatory for junior cricketers.

“The Indian team trainer had thrown the idea of having Yo-Yo test for India under-19 team but Dravid made it clear that it should not be needed for junior cricket. At this age, players should improve their skills. Fitness is important but if he can score runs and take wickets, that should be the parameter of selecting a player,” source at the National Cricket Academy, Bangalore, told The Indian Express.

The Yo-Yo test, which is mandatory for senior players, requires players to pace themselves methodically — starting with a modest jog to the eventual gut-busting sprint — as they shuttle back and forth between two rows of cones kept 20 metres apart. Each run needs to be timed with the three beeps that are played in the background. These are the signals for start, turn and finish. With the timing between the beeps constantly decreasing, each subsequent 40m circuit requires more speed. Getting beaten twice by the beep means the end of the test. The final score is determined by the laps completed and the speed gathered.

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Last month, before the start of the New Zealand series, it was decided that Yo-Yo test would form the basis for selection for the senior team. Among the players who reportedly missed out because of the new fitness parameter were old hands Suresh Raina and Yuvraj Singh. Interestingly, Ashish Nehra, 38, was included in the Indian team, a clear indicator that he had passed the test.

“The captain, coach and chief selector, along with the other members of the selection committee in consultation with the support staff (trainer and physio), have set the parameters. The fitness parameters set by the team management for athletes to be eligible for selection are non-negotiable,” Rahul Johri, the BCCI CEO, had told this newspaper.

India A to tour England in 2018
At a time when India travels to England next year to play a long tour, the BCCI has planned to send its India A team with the senior men’s team. The reason behind scheduling India A series in England has been, if any replacement is required, the board can send their bench players straight from England then sending them from India. “Next year when India Test series starts in England the India A team will travel to play for its A tour as well. Keeping in mind India’s hectic tour, which compiles of three T20’s and three ODI’s and five Test, the board wants to manage players’ work load well,” sources said.

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