Players need more psychological training than physical, opines John Gloster
Rajasthan Royals physiotherapist John Gloster has shared that while the physical aspect of the players is at disadvantage due to the Covid-19 lockdown, it’s the mental aspect that needs more attention. John Gloster has been with the Royals, working in the IPL since the inaugural edition in 2008.
With a ton of experience with international cricketers, Gloster believes that Indian players would definitely be at "physical disadvantage" due to lack of training space during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Also the Lahore Qalandars physio in the Pakistan Super League, Gloster believes that the mental aspect is more difficult to manage. So far the coronavirus outbreak has claimed 27,000 lives and infected more than 600,000 people worldwide.
It has also affected the Indian Premier League (IPL), which was originally scheduled to start on March 29 in Mumbai, by getting it postponed to April 15. However, looking at the current situation, it’s almost likely the tournament will be called off.
As all sports have been put on hold and cricketers all over the world have put themselves in self-isolation. Meanwhile, many of them have indulged in home workouts. As the fate of IPL 13 is yet to be revealed, Gloster’s back-room staff are monitoring their players' physical, mental and nutritional levels.
"For any athlete, the thing they hate most is the fear of the unknown. When a cricketer is injured, and is unsure about time-frames, it's easy for them to become frustrated. And that's when we need to start working on the mental and psychological side of the game. It's a similar situation here, because we don't yet know when they will be playing again, so there's no definitive starting point to work back from," Gloster was quoted as saying by TOI.
"The physical side of their games is probably the easiest bit to manage, to be perfectly honest. Because we know about that aspect, we know what constraints each player has in their home environments. But the mental side of this situation is taking us into some pretty uncharted waters. I think we're going to find just how mentally resilient all these players are. It'll be a really good test for these guys because they're going to be tested by this environment more than they've ever been tested by any stressful situation on the cricket field.”
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