Former Pakistan opener Salman Butt has defended the fitness levels of certain Pakistani cricketers amidst widespread criticism. While acknowledging concerns about the team's overall fitness, Butt singled out Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shan Masood as exceptionally fit players who could potentially be ranked among the world's top ten. However, Butt expressed disappointment with the team's preparation for the upcoming Test series against Bangladesh, suggesting a lack of adequate fitness levels within the squad.
"Improvements will be seen in fitness soon. You cannot say all the players are not fit. If you look at some of the players they are among the top 10 in terms of fitness in World cricket. You can look at Shan Masood, Fakhar Zaman, and Mohammad Rizwan, you look at their fitness, they have achieved good scores in the Yo-Yo Tests. They are good in the gym and run well on the field," he said on his YouTube channel.
"Things are not getting developed in the way they should be. When this happens, the entire team is blamed unfit, people won't look at fit guys even though all the players are hardworking," Butt added.
In addition to Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Rizwan, and Shan Masood, Salman Butt also commended Pakistan's white-ball captain, Babar Azam, for his dedication to improving his fitness over the years.
"Babar Azam scored truckloads of runs in the last 2 years, he proved his fitness, he ran on the field, and scored runs while batting first as well as second innings. Things should go up but they are getting broken in the middle, which is wrong. So, this is the responsibility of the players to maintain their fitness." Said Butt.
"The entire Pakistan is talking about the fitness of the team and it brought a storm in Pakistan, players at the junior level were asked to run. This came after people said players weren't fit in the T20 World Cup 2024. No one questioned the physios or trainers, but instead, they started making players at the district level push hard for fitness. Those who made errors are still there." He concluded.
Pakistan are set to host Bangladesh for a two-match Test series, beginning on August 21. Shan Masood will captain the home side as they look to improve their World Test Championship standings. The first Test will be played in Rawalpindi, followed by the second in Karachi on August 30.
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