India and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) pacer Deepak Chahar stressed the importance of strength training in enhancing the performance of fast bowlers at a recent CSK event.
Chahar highlighted the importance of utilizing the off-season to prioritize strength-building exercises and shared how it directly contributes to increasing pace.
However, the CSK star has not played in any competitive cricket since December 2023, but he is gearing up to make a comeback in the upcoming IPL 2024 as an improved player, focusing on both his bowling and batting skills.
The Indian pacer revealed that he is using his current time to add extra pace to his bowling and refine his batting technique to make an impact in the upcoming IPL 2024.
As reported by ESPNCricinfo, Deepak Chahar said on the sidelines of an event in Chennai where Etihad Airways was announced as the new official sponsor for CSK: “When you're doing rehab - or just playing - you're not gaining strength. You're losing strength in your body.”
He added, “So, this is the right time for me or any athlete… when you get one-and-a-half months or two months, you need to gain strength. If you gain strength, you increase your pace as well. So, yeah, when I played in 2018, I was nearly bowling around 140ks. When you're playing regularly you don't get the chance to do strength training and your pace comes down.”
Chahar signed off by saying, “This is the right time for me to increase my pace. Skill-wise, I've obviously been doing well with batting and bowling. So, I'm trying to develop a few shots with the bat too, because when you bat at No. 8 or No. 9, you only get to play three-four balls. So, you have to utilise those balls with different shots.”
(With ANI Inputs)
