Fitness is my focus: Sree

Zaheer Khan, S Sreesanth and Robin Uthappa have been nagged by injuries of varying nature and intensity in recent times and with a busy schedule ahead it is imperative for the trio to achieve full fitness. The bigwigs will be extra keen to assess the progress Zaheer and Sreesanth have been making as the pace duo will have a key role to play in the months to come.

In a season packed with the Champions League, series against Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and the World Cup 2011, it is essential for India to have a refreshed and injury-free pace bowling unit at their disposal. Sreesanth, who was ruled out of the Sri Lanka tour with a knee injury, reported to NCA on Friday and showed signs of improvement while bowling six overs.

Though his left-knee was still kept under wraps, the Kerala pacer showed little discomfort during training. “Today, I bowled six overs and felt good about my knee. It’s coming along nicely though little more work needs to be done,” Sreesanth said.

The paceman also sought advice from his senior colleague, Zaheer, during the session. “It’s good to have someone as experienced as Zaheer bhai here, and he gave me some valuable inputs today regarding my bowling and injury management,” he said.

With no competitive matches to play in the immediate future, Sreesanth said his focus will be on attaining top level fitness. “I have nothing else in my mind other than reaching my peak fitness, and now I will have to wait for my chance to make my comeback to the team. I want to be fully ready when my chance comes to play for the country,” he said.
Zaheer, who missed the on-going Sri Lanka trip with a shoulder injury, too was seen striving to get into full rhythm while sending down nearly 10 overs spanning two sessions. “It’s a matter of getting back to rhythm and my recovery process is coming on very well,” the left-arm pacer said.

Uthappa, who has been recovering from a recent shoulder surgery, faced a few overs from Zaheer and he showed flashes of sublime touch interspersed with a few misses, stemming out of his rustiness. “I am slowly getting back to my rhythm and I should be better in another week’s time,” he said.