3 REASONS WHY YO-YO TEST SHOULD BE A MANDATORY CRITERION FOR INDIAN TEAM SELECTION

3. HANDLING THE STRESS OF THE JAM-PACKED SCHEDULE OVER THE NEXT 4-YEAR CYCLE

India have a packed schedule ahead

Over the next 4-year cycle, India play the maximum number of matches across all formats (159) followed by WI’s 146. The rest all are quite some margin behind these 2 teams.

Also, India play the maximum T20s, second-highest number of ODIs and third-highest number of test matches among the top 12 teams. With such a hectic schedule ahead for the men in blue, Kohli rightly wants his main players to be up and ready to endure the fitness challenges of the next few years.

With quite a few of the players being part of the regular team in more than 1 format, the workload on them is going to be quite high. With the World Cup, World T20 and the test championship also coming up in the coming 2 years, India would want their main players to be available for most of the matches, which can happen only if they have very high fitness levels. So, India and BCCI are very much entitled to have fitness as a major selection-deciding parameter.

But, does passing the Yo-Yo test guarantee a place in the Indian team? No. It only makes a player eligible for selection with performances and form come into the picture later. But if one fails the test, he can be rejected from the team without a second thought.

Though the test seems quite harsh on some players who have put in good performances but failed the test, the truth is that the modern game demands so much from the player physically. And the players have to be up to the task if they have to succeed at the highest level. By placing such high priority to fitness levels, Team India and Virat Kohli are on the right track towards achieving excellence across all formats of the game.