Former India star names the biggest ‘foodie’ cricketer

Former India cricketer Mohammed Kaif was regarded as one of the fittest players of his era. Along with then-coach John Wright, he played a key role in ushering in a new phase for Indian cricket where fitness standards were given much greater importance.

Reflecting on his playing days, Kaif shared that cricketers earlier had ample breaks between matches and tournaments, which allowed them proper rest and recovery.

“Nowadays, players hardly get time off because the number of matches has gone up significantly. I remember playing the NatWest Trophy final in July, and my next ODI came only three months later in the ICC Champions Trophy in Sri Lanka. Back then, the schedule was lighter, and we had conditioning camps to focus on our fitness,” Kaif said in a recent interaction.

“Now it’s very different—players finish one game and immediately travel for the next. That’s why physios and doctors are so important, as players need extra care to stay fit. Fitness has become central to the sport. Many cricketers even travel with personal trainers and chefs now, which wasn’t the case in our time,” he added.

When asked to name a teammate who preferred food over gym sessions, Kaif said it wasn’t Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, or Zaheer Khan—but Virender Sehwag.

“Sehwag was always reminded to work on his fitness. When John Wright took over as coach, he introduced a culture where gym work was mandatory—cardio, core training, leg workouts, and upper body. Every session had to be logged. Usually, we would complete one or two exercises per session. But Sehwag would tick all four categories every single time, even if he had done only one or two of them. After a month, his sheet showed 50–60 ticks while the rest of us had 20–30. He loved food, so sticking to the fitness plan wasn’t easy for him,” Kaif recalled.

Former India batting coach and all-rounder Sanjay Bangar also weighed in on who the biggest foodie in the current Indian team.

“In today’s squad, I’d say it’s Mohammed Shami. He really enjoys his food. Whenever a meal is served, he relishes it—and he also makes sure the person sitting next to him eats just as well,” Bangar revealed in a recent interaction.