Suresh Raina makes himself eligible for selection after clearing the Yo-Yo test

Suresh Raina has been out of the Indian team for quite some time now. He has been playing first-class cricket and has been working on his fitness. Raina last played for India in February of 2017 against England in a T20I. There were rumours that the 31-year-old had shifted his focus to family and cricket was no longer his top priority hence the drift.

However, he led Uttar Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy this season but without making a mark. He had a string of poor performances and the team struggled as well. They were nowhere close to making it to the knockouts. But it was not just form that resulted in Raina’s ouster from the team, he wasn’t as fit as he used to be and when the yo-yo test was set a parameter for selection he fell way behind.

The yo-yo test

It is a tough nut to crack for cricketers who are coming from injury layoffs. This test has become one of the main reasons some high profile cricketers have been sidelined. However, Raina after training for it long enough has successfully cleared this test. He has managed to get past the score of 16.1 out of 19. Clearing this endurance test is mandatory for all the players who wish to be in contention for the national team.

The left-hander managed to get that score and will be knocking on the doors for the upcoming South Africa tour. Along with him, Yuvraj Singh who had struggled to get through also managed to clear the test recently with a score of 16.3.

Raina confirmed the news on social media when he posted a photo thanking all the National Cricket Academy members for their help. He posted a photo with his colleagues and coaches and captioned it as “Cleared my Yo-Yo & fitness test today, after days of hard work at #NCA! ‪Received tremendous support from all the trainers, coaches & officials. ‪Thank you all! ‪It’s always so encouraging to train here at #NCA, motivates me to push my limits and bring the best out of me.”

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