FEATURE: Cricketers in better shape than ever thanks to 'shift in professionalism'

Players were only contracted to the club for six months, so had the winters to themselves, before returning for the summer season.

It would mean that it wasn’t unusual for players to return not quite in tip-top physical shape, but cricket was a very different sport in those days.

Fielding was just something that had to be done, and for many, endured, in between batting and bowling.

It certainly wasn't something to excel at as it is now.

The suggestion that somebody should sprint 50 yards and then dive full length to save a single by turning a boundary into a three would have just been laughed at over a beer or two in the Abington or the County Tavern at the close of play.

Alex Wakely has been a professional for 13 years now, and although things weren’t as laid back as I am suggesting when he started out, there was still a hangover from those more relaxed days when he rocked up for his first County pre-season.

Cricket has gone through something of a revolution on the fitness and strength and conditioning front in recent years, with the players having to up their game to meet the demands of a sport that is ever changing.

The advent of Twenty20 cricket has revolutionised the sport, so much so that it is becoming ever more difficult to ‘hide’ individuals in the field.

Cricketers have responded by working harder, becoming fitter and more professional, and it is a change that Wakely welcomes.

One big factor in the change in attitudes is the fact the players are now all contracted to their clubs for 12 months.

Take the Northants squad for instance.

They were told to report to the club for fitness training at the beginning of November, and were hard at it from then until a week ago, although now things have of course been put on hold due to the coronavirus epidemic.

The ECB announced last week that the new cricket season has been suspended until May 29 at the earliest, and the Northants players have been told to train at home until the end of April with the club going into a four-week shut down.

The County squad will now be in limbo as to when they will get a bat or ball in hand, but Wakely believes whenever it eventually happens and the season does start, the players will at least be in the best shape possible.

“There has been a bit of shift in professionalism in the game these days,” said Wakely.

“Everything is getting much tougher, and there is a big focus on strength and conditioning, running and fitness.

“If you look at the physiques of the players over the past couple of years, they are changing, and youngsters now are having to be athletes.

“We are playing more cricket, the game is faster, more dynamic, and you have to be fitter.

“That is tough on the older guys, and with me, Bergy (Gareth Berg) and Sando (Ben Sanderson) now as the old guys we try and keep up with the youngsters.

“But that can only be good for the game, and at a club like Northants where we have limited resources, we have to keep our players fitter.”