Morphological characteristics of elite male cricket players

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to investigate somatotype components of four different age group cricket players of Goa. A total of two hundred (200) male state level cricket players in the following age groups viz., Under-14 N= 50, Under-16 N= 50, Under-18 N=50, and Under-22 N=50 participated as the subjects in the study. Standard procedures were followed for taking 17 anthropometric measurements. The three components of the somatotype were derived using revised Heath-Carter somatotype methods. The hypotheses of the study were tested by SANOVA procedures. When four groups were compared to each other the result demonstrated that all four groups were significantly different from each other in their somatotype components. It was concluded that cricket players of different age groups showed “specialized” body dimensions and physique at various stages of their age group. The relationships established in this study strongly suggest that coaches include specific morphological tests in their fitness programs and they should further be used in team selection processes as they are strong indicators for success and will make the selection process more objective.