Pakistan cricket coach bans biryani, sweets for players

Pakistan's new head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq has made his first decisive move and has come down heavily on the Pakistani players regarding their fitness levels which was under the scanner during the ICC World Cup 2019. Misbah has asked for a change in diet for the players in the national camp and the domestic tournament to instil a new fitness culture in the setup.

"No more Biryani or oil rich red meat meals or sweet dishes for the players now," said a member of a catering company managing the food plan for the players in a match of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy.

Misbah has issued orders that only barbecue items and pasta with lots of fruits should be on the menu for all teams in the domestic season while the same diet plan would be followed in the national camps.

"Pakistani players are known to have a fondness for junk food and rich oily dishes when they are not playing for the national team but Misbah has told every player that a log book will be maintained on their fitness and diet plans and anyone found lacking would be shown the door," a source, aware of the developments, said.

Misbah, who played international cricket till the age of 43 and is still active as a player at 45, is seen as a role model for maintaining high fitness standards.

As far as building a team is concerned, Misbah has already spoken about his vision and how wants his players to play attractive cricket. "I have been saying this forever that there is some confusion in the way we are thinking about being defensive and aggressive," he said after his appointment. "I always believed that your strategy is based on the resources you've got. Ideally, you obviously try and wish to have resources that you can just dominate and knock out the opposition.

"Being a coach, I will try to build a team that plays aggressively and wins easily. But then at certain times you have to assess the strength of the opponent and make your strategy accordingly.