With international and domestic cricket shut down to avoid the COVID-19 spread, players have been given a rare opportunity to sit back and introspect about their careers, apart from focussing on their mental and physical fitness, believes West Indies limited-overs captain Kieron Pollard.
The coronavirus pandemic has had a worldwide effect, claiming over 12,000 lives amid the more than 2,50,000 infected globally.
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The outbreak has led various cricket boards to either cancel or indefinitely postpone all their immediately fixtures in the calendar, which Pollard reckons players should make good use of.
"It is a good time for introspection, a good time for reflection, a good time to look at where you are as an individual in your career and what you want to achieve going forward," he was quoted as saying by Jamaica Gleaner.
After a lengthy season captaining West Indies in India, Sri Lanka, either side of a home series against Ireland, Pollard was due to turn up at the Pakistan Super League. However, he aggravated a niggle in his right thigh and was subsequently ruled out of the tournament.
The 32-year-old all-rounder is currently focussed on his fitness and overall preparation to be ready for whenever the game resumes.
"You have to take this time in order to do that and also keep yourself in good physical shape, and mentally as well," he said. "Because when the bell rings and they say 'ok, everything is back to normal and we need to go on tour', it might not be enough time to be prepared, but you as an individual have to be prepared mentally in order for you to try to perform at your best."
Cricket West Indies (CWI) had suspended all forms of the game in the Caribbean for the season in order to tackle the threat posed by the coronavirus.
In international cricket, West Indies is scheduled to next play a three-Test series in England from June 4, which is under serious doubt because of the growing cases of people being tested positive of COVID-19 in the UK.
(Inputs from PTI)
