Twenty20 will improve players' fitness, says Leipus

Andrew Leipus, India's former physiotherapist, has said playing Twenty20 cricket will help improve players' fitness as it is an intense game which requires them to practice harder. "It will be very challenging how they cope up with new demands," Leipus, who was in Mumbai for a fitness camp for youngsters, told Mid-Day, a Mumbai-based tabloid. "There will be less recovery time and the demand for physical fitness will be more."

Mahendra Singh Dhoni will lead a young Indian side to the Twenty20 World Championship in South Africa next month.

Leipus, who worked with the national side from 1999 to 2004, also stressed the importance of having good trainers at the domestic level. "You need qualified support staff," he said. "There is a general notion here [in India] that former players can do everything. But it's not so. You need to have good trainers. There are so many good trainers here but it is sad that the board turns a blind eye."

The reason why many players had recurring injuries, Leipus said, was because there was no trained person to assist them to recover completely from the injury. "There is no proper network and coordination. Injury issues should be rightly addressed at all levels. Even the players are so anxious to play because of the fear of losing their spot, sponsors, and many other things."

Leipus said the players found it difficult to cope when they moved from the domestic to the international level, and wanted the juniors to get as much knowledge of international standards from the national players as they could, to help them later on.