Kontouri - keeping Sri Lankans shipshape

By S. Dinakar

GALLE, AUG. 18. Hard running, sliding stops, sensational catches - this man has brought about an astonishing transformation in Sri Lankan cricket. Someone who has made the side fitter, stronger and faster.

He is as much loved and respected as any of the super stars in this part of the world. Alex Kontouri is the common thread running across the several Lankan success stories on the cricket field since 1995.

The islanders were never ever short of talent, yet it is Kontouri, a naturalised Australian of Greek origin, who has provided the team with the cutting edge, as a fitness trainer of exceptional ability.

He joined Lankan team on a temporary basis during the side's traumatic tour of Australia in 1995-96, stayed on till the World Cup, where the Lankans stunned the field, and has since been a huge factor along with coach Dav Whatmore in the nation's steady rise.

``When I first came in, the levels of fitness were low for guys playing international cricket. Then we worked on specific programmes and the players responded well,'' says Kontouri in an interview to The Hindu after the Lankans swept aside the Indians at Galle.

``They were crying out for somebody during a difficult tour, when I entered the scene,'' he talks about his introduction to the Lankan side and adds ``Lanka winning the World Cup gave me a bit of a leverage.''

The players were receptive and the improvements began to show. ``Arjuna (Ranatunga) lost 12 kgs and really you can't ask more than that. We had a different routine for him, obviously you can't ask him to do what a 20-year-old can. And Aravinda (De Silva) had one leg shorter than the other, he was born like that. That's why he was not so quick, but he worked really hard.''

In the current side, he picks Russel Arnold and Kumara Sangakkara as the fittest cricketers. ``All the new guys are pretty fit. With them being young, you can mould them the way you want.'' He calls Muttiah Muralitharan ``extremely quick'', while skipper Sanath Jayasuriya has ``explosive'' energy.

He has a word of praise for an experienced soldier too - left-arm paceman Chaminda Vaas, who sets an example really for the younger guys. And getting Vaas ready for World Cup '96 was one the biggest challenges before Kontouri.

``He was down with a stress fracture of the back. He was among my first cases. He managed to play the World Cup,'' says Kontouri. Yet, another stiff hurdle for Kontouri came in the form of another left-arm paceman - Nuwan Zoysa.

Over to the Super Physio. ``In a period of 18 months since 1997, Zoysa had three stress fractures of the lower back. They were career threatening injuries. At that stage it was doubtful if he could continue. Did a lot of work with him to strengthen his back. Modified his action, his run-up.''

Here he also dwells on his rapport with coach Dav Whatmore, that has enabled him implement several of his programmes. Zoysa now has an injured ankle, but Kontouri says he should be fit soon. And the current Lankan pace spearhead Dilhara Fernando too has been put on the road by Kontouri. The fast bowler was just 17 when he too was referred to him with a stress fracture of the lower back. ``He was lucky that he got treated so early. He's a determined cricketer too.''

Mentally it can be very tough on a player when he realises that he has a serious problem. ``You got to be honest with them. Probably they learn to appreciate things a bit more than otherwise. They realise the value of being there,'' Kontouri notes.

According to him, one of the chief reasons for the Lankan cricketers achieving superior levels of fitness has been the setting up of a high-tech gym, exclusively for cricketers, a couple of years back in Colombo. ``All Lankan teams, the senior, `A' and under-19 sides work out there and that has really helped.''

He says every break between tours is vital to a side's preparation physically. ``During this period we put in as much work as we can. Apart from the routines and the gym work, we do a lot of running.''

Since he concentrates on a core group of 20 to 25 players, Kontouri knows exactly what each one requires. And the bond between him and the cricketers is very special - a symbiotic relationship. ``Over a period of time, you come to know what each one of them needs, how much their body can take.''

And some of his most cherished moments have come during the Lankan triumphs. ``The World Cup '96 was special. Equally satisfying was the Oval Test victory against England, when Sanath scored a double hundred and Murali came up with a huge haul. And Ranatunga won a Test match in Pakistan with a badly broken finger, that later needed surgery.''

Despite `the fitness revolution' he has brought about in the Lankan cricket, Kontouri is still not fully satisfied. ``They are good, but they can be better. Nothing ever is perfect.''

The man is a hard taskmaster... but with a difference. He can put a smile on the faces of his boys even as they go through a grinding training session. Alex Kontouri makes them enjoy it. He's a precious commodity.

Team physio Alex Kontouri with the Sri Lankan spearhead Chaminda Vaas. Getting Vaas ready for the 96` World Cup was one of Kontouri's first big challenges.

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