The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is mulling to send a group of players to the United States (US) as part of a programme designed to expose them to new power-hitting methods and a different training environment, white-ball coach Mike Hesson has said.
“We’re sending some players to the US,” he told a media outlet.
“There’s some power-hitting expertise over there, and we’re exploring some options. We’ve got some players who’ve had some longer-term injuries, and players we want to expose to different methods of power hitting and just a different learning environment, spending four months in one place to get some new fresh ideas,” Hesson added.
While arrangements are not yet finalised, and a decision on which players will be sent is still pending, Hesson also spoke of the nature of the training. “There’s a bit of a collaboration. It’s certainly not just strength and conditioning.”
“We’ve got Javed Mughal who’s come in here and changing the way players are training and assessing them in a different way. So he needs time to plan it out as well,” he added.
Mughal, a UK-based physiotherapist appointed as the PCB’s director sports and exercise medicine earlier this year, has been central to a broader overhaul of the board’s medical and fitness culture.
At a press conference alongside PCB chief Mohsin Naqvi, he described fitness as “non-negotiable” in professional sports and said the board had developed a robust, reliable and repeatable testing and screening battery.
Among the players expected to be under consideration for the US programme is Under-19 fast bowler Ali Raza. The 18-year-old has drawn considerable attention as one of Pakistan’s most exciting white-ball pace prospects.
He was part of the Pakistan side that won the 50-over U19 Asia Cup, taking 4-42 in the final against India, a spell that included the wicket of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
Earlier this year, he also took a hat-trick for Peshawar Zalmi in the Pakistan Super League (PSL).
Raza is yet to make his international debut, though he has been included in Pakistan’s Asian Games squad. The PCB is keen to manage his fitness and workload carefully before exposing him to the rigours of international cricket.
“We’re trying to get Ali Raza fit and strong enough to deal with the demands of international cricket,” Hesson said. “It’s tough trying to be able to bowl multiple spells and sustain his pace. We know when he’s at his top end pace, he’s exciting. But when the pressure ramps up, the pressures on the body ramp up. So he’s got to work on his body so he can deal with those,” he further added.
Hesson pushed back on any suggestion that Pakistan suffer from an unusually high rate of pace bowling injuries. “Pace bowling wise, there’s no more injuries than there are anywhere else in the world,” he said.
On the broader plan, he struck an upbeat note. “I think it’s good that we’re looking at exploring those options, rather than saying ‘no, you have to stay here’.”
The development comes as Pakistan face a demanding stretch of cricket ahead.
They travel to the West Indies for a two-Test series starting July 25, before heading to England for a three-Test tour beginning August 19.
Beyond the Test calendar, the 2027 ODI World Cup is firmly on the radar. The tournament is scheduled to be held in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia from October 4 to November 21, 2027.
