After every couple of years, the fitness of Pakistani players gets exposed with the bellies of the players popping out and players huffing and puffing while taking a stride. The solution always tends to be going to the Pakistan Army.
Pakistan Cricket Kakul Camp 2016
The first Kakul camp that was held in 2016 under the captaincy of Misbah ul Haq was held to prepare for the 2016 Test Series against England. While the players were already quite fit, as this was the first return tour to England, after the spot-fixing exposure in 2010, Pakistan wanted to make sure to make a good impression.
The PMA Kakul camp is located in Abbottabad which is a high mountainous area with cool weather, with an atmosphere ideal for rigorous training.
Misbah, Younis, Shan Masood and Fawad Alam would emerge as the fittest cricketers from this camp. While the likes of Zulfiqar Babar and Sohaib Maqsood remained unfit. Soon the dividends of this camp were repaid when Pakistan made the first blow on England at Lords and eventually drew the Test series 2-2.
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Pakistan Cricket Kakul Camp 2024
For months now, Pakistani players’ fitness has been questioned with a lot of bellies popping up and guys like Azam Khan being considered for national selection. The new incoming Chairman, Mohsin Naqvi has a few concerns about the fitness of the players.
The army again has been on board to make the players fit in 20 days as the World T20 2024 comes near. This time 29 players have been named, amongst whom are Mohammad Amir, Azam Khan, and Imad Wasim.
The results of the first few tests are pouring out where Irfan Khan Niazi and Mohammad Rizwan are the fittest, while the likes of Imad Wasim have already started to pull out.
The purpose of NCA?
All this has made everyone question, what purpose does the National Cricket Academy (NCA) serve? If players are to be trained by the army, then what are the NCA and its staff doing with all the equipment they have?
The NCA seems to be just a ground with 10 outdoor nets 10 indoor nets and a swimming pool. The NCA seems to be like a club where cricketers just look to hang out.
If all these years a fitness testing process has not been created at the NCA, it does make one wonder what goes around at the NCA.
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