Break has given me opportunity to have one-on-one conversations with players, feels Vikram Rathour

“The last few months have been unprecedented. None of us has gone through the kind of situation that we are facing now. The challenge was, or still is, to keep the players motivated and do the best they can to be ready for when the cricket starts. When you are playing international cricket, you are on the move all the time. Travelling and playing matches day-in-day-out. This break has given me an opportunity to have one-on-one conversations with the players,” Rathour told ToI.

“As there was no possibility of playing cricket, the best thing to do was to do self-analysis and self-reflection. Identifying the areas of your game that you want to improve in, and also how you want to work towards it. Reflecting on the kind of cricket you've played last year. Things that you have done well and also things that you did not do well. The players were advised to do shadow practice and do lots of visualisation.”

“I don't think so. It will be equally challenging for both - batsmen and the bowlers - to get back to their peak form after a long break like this. The good thing is that most of the players have been managing to train well during the lockdown. Their fitness routines are being monitored closely by the trainers and physios. So, we are hoping that whenever the outdoor sessions start, it will be a matter of a few weeks of practice and then they should be ready to start playing some practice/domestic matches and then on to international cricket,” the former Indian batsman further added.