By Rob Barnett
What do Liam Plunkett, Jack Brooks and Christine Ohuruogu have in common? They are all training at altitude in Potchefstroom, South Africa.
Plunkett and Brooks are part of the England Performance Programme fast bowlers camp while women’s 400 metres world champion and former Olympic gold medallist Ohuruogu is also working in the impressive facilities there.
England player Plunkett and fellow fast bowler Brooks, who both helped Yorkshire win this year’s LV= County Championship, are coming to the end of the first of four weeks of training at a height of almost 4,500 feet in temperatures touching 30 degrees.
They are among seven seamers on the trip, at the same time the EPP batting and spin camp takes place in Sri Lanka alongside the senior team’s tour.
Those in Potchefstroom are working under the guidance of Kevin Shine plus Ottis Gibson, and will soon be joined by James Anderson and Stuart Broad as the England duo step up their return from knee problems.
Like his Test team-mates, Plunkett is on the comeback from injury.
The 29-year-old has not played since England’s second Test with India in mid-July, at the end of which he suffered discomfort in his left ankle.
Having missed the rest of the summer, including Yorkshire’s first championship triumph for 13 years, the former Durham man is this week bowling again.
Speaking exclusively to ecb.co.uk, Plunkett said: “It’s a bit stepping into the deep end again, so it’s nice to get through it and feel like I’m back and just concentrate on what I do best, bowling, rather than worry about if my foot’s okay, so that’s a bit of a relief.
“Everything’s going well. The body feels good. So apart from being put through the wringer, with fitness and weights and stuff, my body’s in good shape.”
The intense exercise, six days a week, that Plunkett refers to is part of a routine designed to get the pacemen into top shape.
“We’ve been knackered,” he admitted. “It’s quite a full-on programme.
“It’s broken up into three sessions. From nine to 11-ish you’ve got a block where you’re doing your stretching stuff and your strengthening stuff like bodyweight.
“You do that at the gym, you come back, have a bit of lunch, you do another session, have a break and another session.
“So it’s spread out and you’re not finishing until half-five. By the time you’ve showered and had dinner everyone’s knackered from the day because the heat.”
Plunkett is sharing a room with Brooks, his former flat-mate who gave a similar take on the training.
“It’s very full on. And then you’ve got to get your rest and your sleep in,” Brooks told ecb.co.uk.
“You get up and have a stretch, get some mobility and get some core strength early doors in the morning.
“You come back an hour later and do another session, either in the gym or a running session, and then we do bowling or batting in the afternoons.
“It’s been quite well spread out across the day. You have a little rest in between, have a bit of lunch and then come back and do another session
“It’s been well organised so far. It’s good fun.”
Likewise Plunkett, who played in seven of Yorkshire’s championship games this year while Brooks featured in all 16 matches, thinks the hard work will be worth it when the pair return to South Africa for England Lions’ tour in the new year.
“We’re just getting used to it but it’s going to be a plus when we get back home for fitness tests and stuff and when we kick off in January over here,” Plunkett said.
“When you start running you’re a bit short of breath. You’re body feels alright; you just lose your breath a lot easier. It’s just good to know you’re training and working in altitude.”
The fact that Ohuruogu, who won her Olympic gold in the 2008 400 metres, is among those training there suggests Plunkett and Brooks’ work will pay off.
Brooks added: “I think there are probably a few other Olympic athletes out on the track, some from Europe.
“It’s good to see how other athletes go about their business. It’s a good camp to be fair. It’s perfect for what we need at the minute.
“You’ve just got to knuckle down and try to get through it. It’s going to be a long four weeks but it should be worth it at the end of it.”
Phil Hughes tribute, from the England Lions seamers #PhilipHughes#putoutyourbats#ForeverNotOutpic.twitter.com/CUzDGAfReW
— Liam plunkett (@Liam628) November 28, 2014