Preparations to resume domestic cricket begin through Yo-Yo test

Bangladesh returned to international cricket last month after a long hiatus caused by Covid-19. They are due to tour New Zealand for three ODIs and three T20Is next month. Now the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) wants to resume domestic cricket. The country's highest cricket governing body is planning to resume domestic cricket with the National Cricket League (NCL) in March.

The preparations are already underway. Cricketers from Dhaka Metro, Rajshahi, and Rangpur, the three teams in the National Cricket League, underwent the Yo-Yo test at the Mirpur Indoor Stadium on Tuesday. Cricketers of the rest of the teams will also undergo a series of Yo-Yo tests.

Ariful Islam, manager of the BCB's tournament committee, told The Business Standard (TBS) about the fitness test. "After the completion of the Bangabandhu T20 Cup, the BCB president said that domestic cricket would return as soon as the cricketers are vaccinated. We are preparing now according to that instruction," he said.

Ariful Islam said that many cricketers have already been vaccinated against coronavirus. "Many cricketers have been vaccinated. The others will be vaccinated soon. Now the fitness test is also underway. There will be a total of three fitness reviews a year. The first episode of it started today."

The Ireland HP team (Ireland Wolves) are scheduled to tour Bangladesh to play a series against the Bangladesh High-Performance team. The BCB wants to start domestic cricket after this series. "We will be able to start the league after the Ireland HP team tour. The tentative date is March 20-22. This time too it will be a two-tier tournament. Each team will play home and away matches," added Ariful.

Dhaka Metro opener Shamsur Rahman gave a Yo-Yo test on Tuesday. "The two Tests (Yo-Yo and beep test) are close," said the right-handed batsman. "But the yo-yo test is more advanced. A high level of fitness is required now. I got 18 today. I will undergo the test again in three months. My target is to get 18.5 then."

The fitness of Bangladesh cricketers is usually checked through a beep test. But from now on BCB will review fitness through the Yo-Yo test. The top cricketing nations now prefer the Yo-Yo test over the beep test.