Rattled by frequent injury breakdowns, player cramping, and a visible dip in athletic standards during the white-ball tour of Ireland and England, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the medical team at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru are overhauling the national team's fitness framework.
In a major move to restore uniform standards across the squad, the BCCI is establishing strict, standardised base parameters for the newly introduced Bronco test and 2K running test, putting an end to non-definitive, relaxed target-setting for senior and recovering players.
The Indian team underwent a structural shift in its strength and conditioning philosophy after Adrian Leroux replaced Soham Desai as the team's strength and conditioning coach last year. Under Leroux, the agility-driven Bronco test replaced the long-standing Yo-Yo test as the primary metric to evaluate player fitness. However, the transition lacked consistency. Until recently, the Bronco test had no uniform baseline parameter, causing confusion and a lack of alignment between the CoE in Bengaluru and the Indian team management.
To eliminate ambiguity, the BCCI medical team has rolled out official benchmark figures for all contracted players:
Bronco Test: Players must complete the shuttle-run drills within a benchmark time of 5.15 to 5.20 minutes to be declared fit for selection.
2K Running Test: A mandatory threshold of 9 to 10 minutes has been set to complete the 2 km run.
Yo-Yo Test Baseline: For context, the BCCI previously relied on a baseline score of 16.5 on the Yo-Yo test.
Sources within the BCCI revealed that inconsistent testing guidelines severely damaged overall fitness levels. Over the past year, the CoE had set customized, often relaxed targets for certain senior players to help them pass fitness evaluations comfortably. Furthermore, CoE staff reportedly cleared players like Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy hastily to meet immediate team management selections rather than ensuring full athletic readiness.
With players suffering frequent cramps even in favorable, cool English weather, the BCCI executive leadership led by secretary Devajit Saikia and team management questioned Team India's lead physio, Kamlesh Jain.
Jain has been explicitly instructed to ignore a player's stature or seniority and strictly flag any fitness deficiency. The team management raised serious concerns over:
Questionable mobility on the field.
A noticeable rise in slow fielders.
Senior batters struggling to maintain intensity while running between the wickets during longer innings.
The transition to new fitness parameters suffered from severe communication breakdowns. Regular Test players, including fast bowler Mohammed Siraj, were caught unprepared when subjected to sudden fitness assessments at the CoE prior to departing for the Sri Lanka tour. Contracted players and non-Test regulars are only now receiving formal handbooks outlining these mandatory baseline targets.
The CoE's recent management faced scrutiny over two notable player cases:
Jasprit Bumrah: The CoE failed to get Bumrah match-ready despite initial assurances to selectors and management that he would be fit for the opening Test in Sri Lanka on August 15.
Harshit Rana: Sent back to the CoE after the third T20I in England due to severe cramping, Rana was flagged by team management as being 4 kg overweight. Having been cleared for the UK tour at 97 kg, he was instructed to drop below a strict 96 kg cap. Now down to 94 kg, he awaits final clearance.
Under previous management, India successfully navigated three consecutive ICC events the 2023 ODI World Cup, 2024 T20 World Cup, and 2025 Champions Trophy with minimal injuries (aside from Hardik Pandya's ankle twist) due to workload monitoring and customized injury-prevention protocols. Yo-Yo tests were conducted sparingly (every six months or post-injury). However, current practices have drifted toward aggressive, repetitive testing forcing players through frequent 2K, Bronco, and Yo-Yo tests simultaneously leading to extreme fatigue and burnout rather than sustainable fitness.
