Kirsten questions commitment, fitness of players

New Delhi:

Team India's coach Gary Kirsten is livid and says even he, at over 42, is fitter than some of the players.

Kirsten has raised critical questions on the commitment of the team and the fitness levels of players like Yuvraj Singh and Rohit Sharma. He has also said that the team is content to be number 1 in Tests and number 2 in ODIs but has not shown enough commitment to the World T20.

India, the title holders of the inaugural World T20 tournament in 2007, had failed to win either of the three Super Eights match and crashed out of the ongoing World T20.

After the pathetic Indian performance at the World T20, Kirsten held one-on-one meetings with six to seven senior players. The players were Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma, Gautam Gambhir, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra and captain MS Dhoni.

He then met the rest of the team together and demanded better fitness from the players in one month.

The South African also said the players are adamant about their right to party saying they want the freedom.

Forum: Is Kirsten trying to save his job or is he right in slamming Indian players?

Kirsten, who has been coaching Team India since 2008, will submit a report to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on the West Indies washout.

The big question though is the timing of Kirsten's report. If fielding is one indication of poor fitness then India has been struggling in this department for a couple of years now.

Yuvraj's fitness has been under fire for a while now, and his run of poor scores has not helped. Yuvi has no half-century in 14 IPL games and 5 T20 games. Understandably he bats lower down the order but it's been evident that he's been totally out of sorts.

Yet it wasn't just Yuvraj but almost everyone who had their problems in the World T20, especially with the short ball.

Sachin Tendulkar, who backed his teammates, however gave a simple tip to check Indian team's susceptibility to bouncers and short-pitched deliveries - by practicing more.

The master batsman came out in full support and said the players knew their responsibilities well and needed to be focused on cricket. He also asked the fans to support the players, as that will help them start afresh.