A healthy breakfast is crucial for Indian cricketers to perform at their peak. As elite athletes, they need to carefully fuel their bodies and minds to maintain energy, focus and endurance throughout long training sessions and matches.
Cricketers need to be strategic with their breakfast choices on game days versus training days. Pre-match meals should be easily digestible, such as fruit smoothies or oatmeal. During demanding practice weeks, heartier options like veggie omelettes can help meet increased calorie needs. While breakfast staples like poha, upma and dosas are certainly popular choices, players need to customise their meals with nutrient-dense ingredients.
Consuming a balanced breakfast sets the foundation for Indian cricketers to train hard, avoid fatigue and perform at their best consistently. According to many statements issued in public, here are a few breakfast options that our Indian cricketers enjoy:
Eggs And Vegetables For Virat Kohli
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A balanced diet with lots of vegetables and lean proteins is enjoyed by Virat Kohli. In a recent interview, he highlighted that his breakfast plate is known to include a colourful array of veggies like spinach, broccoli, carrots, and peppers. For protein, he takes eggs, either scrambled or as an omelette with veggies. And sometimes, he also enjoys quinoa as a nutritious whole grain. To start his day, he has two cups of coffee to energise himself for the day.
Poha For Rohit Sharma
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In numerous interviews, Rohit Sharma has openly shared his deep affection for Poha. This cherished breakfast dish originates from his hometown of Maharashtra. And having been raised in a traditional Maharashtrian family, Sharma's mornings were filled with the comforting aroma of homemade poha, prepared with flattened rice flakes, mustard seeds, curry leaves, onions, and coriander.
Porridge And Milk For MS Dhoni
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MS Dhoni expressed in an interview recently that his favourite breakfast was a bowl of porridge topped with fresh fruits like banana slices, berries, and nuts like almonds or walnuts. Dhoni opts for a tall glass of cold milk for protein and calcium too. On some mornings, he opts for parathas instead.
Oats And fruits For Ajinkya Rahane
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Ajinkya Rahane, India's Test veteran, has shared in many interviews that he starts his day with a hearty breakfast of oats. The complex carbohydrates and fibre in oats provide him with sustained energy. He enjoys oats with fresh fruit, nuts, or seeds to add extra flavour and nutrition.
Toast And Beans For R Ashwin
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Ravichandran Ashwin shared in various interviews that he likes to start his mornings off right with a nutritious breakfast to fuel his day. On most days, he enjoys a simple meal of baked beans with crisp slices of buttered toast. The protein from the beans and carbohydrates from the toast give energy. Baked beans and toast provide a balance of complex carbs, fibre, and plant-based protein.
Almond Milk, Nuts And Banana For Ishant Sharma
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Ishant Sharma has a simple yet nutritious morning routine to start his day. He said in many interviews earlier that his go-to breakfast is a handful of mixed nuts, which provide protein, healthy fats, and fibre. Then he has a glass of almond milk, which is rich in vitamins and minerals like calcium and vitamin D. To top it off, he has a banana, which gives him natural sugars and potassium to keep him feeling satisfied. This combination of nuts, non-dairy milk, and fruit keeps fueling his body with key nutrients.
Eggs And Smoothie For Suryakumar Yadav
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Suryakumar Yadav starts his day with a nutritious breakfast to fuel his body. In a recent interview, he shared that he prefers to keep it simple with just a few eggs cooked, however, he likes them, whether scrambled, fried, or boiled. To add a boost of protein, he'll blend up a smoothie packed with yoghurt, milk, protein powder, peanut butter, bananas and other fruit. The protein from the eggs and smoothie gives him sustained energy to get through his morning practice session.
