For every sportsperson in the world, fitness is one of the major and important factors that helps them perform 100 percent in their play. As the days pass and technology mounting, the fitness levels of a sportsperson is also enhancing.
With fitness levels at an all-time high in cricket, the margins for bettering one another is getting narrower by the day. Ahead of the Ashes Series between England and Australia, Australian cricketers have gained a massive upper hand by enlisting the help of Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt to boost their running between the wickets during the Ashes series against England.
We all know Usain Bolt retired from competitive sprinting recently and soon he got a job to do with Australian cricketers. The Jamaican track superstar, the world record holder in the 100m and 200m and eight-time Olympic champion, is working with the Australian batsmen to improve their “explosiveness” off the mark.
Usain Bolt passed on tips to the Aussie batsmen on improving their running between the wickets. The 31-year-old athlete made the cricketers cover yards at a good pace. It was a promotional event where Gatorade, in association with Eleven and TBWA Sydney, teamed up with Bolt to create a new metric, which will observe the batsmen’s speed while running between the wickets.
The ‘Bolt rate’ will be considered as a measure and the quickest cricketer will bag the ‘Gatorade Fastest Run Trophy’. “It’s all about explosiveness, and that’s one thing I’ve noticed with cricket, they don’t really have a lot of explosiveness when they’re running,” Bolt was quoted.
“They seem to always take off at a slow rate. Getting that right will definitely help people.” The 31-year-old Jamaican emphasized that, as an asset in cricket, he was trying to create more awareness about running. With Australia set to take on Joe Root’s men in the 1st Test in Brisbane, Australia’s middle-order batsman Peter Handscomb spoke about the session with Bolt and welcomed the tips they received.
He feels it would be good to use Bolt’s tips and see if it can help them clinch the title this time. “He was giving us a few pointers on how to get a little bit faster. We’ll give it a crack. He was trying to get us nice and low in the turn and in and out. The first couple of steps are key and if we can get them right, we’ll be fast.”
“Obviously he’s the fastest man ever so if we can have the title with him, that’d be cool.” Bolt drew a curtain on his illustrious career after a disappointing performance at the World Championship in London, where he could only win a bronze in the 100m. Since then the sprint king has been eyeing some role in football. “It’s something that I want to do. I’m trying to get fit now,” he said.
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Bolt said had been busy after retirement preparing for a tilt at football, having been invited to train with Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund. “It’s something that I want to do. I’m trying to get fit now,” he said. “My doctor finally passed me after my hamstring problems at the world championships, so now I can start training.
“I’ve started training while I’m here and trying to get into shape before I get home and next year I’ll get a trial and we’ll take it from there,” concluded Bolt. The first Ashes Test between Australia and England starts at The Gabba in Brisbane on November 23.