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Prior to the opening match of the women’s T20I series
against England, Amol Muzumdar made fielding and fitness his primary priorities
at his maiden news conference as India’s head coach.
“Fielding and fitness are of highest
priority,” Muzumdar said on the eve of the first T20I. “There is no
compromise on fielding and fitness. There will be lot of camps that will be
happening post this series and getting into the next season. There will be a
lot of cricket played either at the NCA or somewhere or the other.
“More exposure, fitness and fielding will be my
top priority. The fringe players – the new generation coming through – will get
equal opportunities. These are the prime things that we will take forward after
this series.”
At the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru, India
began preparing for the multi-format series against England and Australia in
mid-November. The series would include two one-off Test matches. They held a
three-day camp following a four-day practise match before arriving at the
Wankhede on December 2. With limits in place, attention was narrowed in on the
fitness-related factors.
“Goals have already been set,” Muzumdar
said. “We already had some [fitness] test done when we were at the NCA in
Bengaluru. [The parameters] are already in place and we follow it very
rigorously and religiously moving forward. There will be three tests in the
season, that is already being followed.”
“We need to play a certain brand of cricket,
which we have been known for,” Muzumdar said. “Shafali and Jemimah
[Rodrigues] are both a very important cogs in the wheel. I would like them to
continue what they have been doing.
“Fearless cricket is something I have always
advocated. We would be playing that brand of cricket.”