Screw this fitness ** fitness is very overrated in cricket cause of kohli. I say it time and time again cricket is a skill based game not a fitness based game. You can’t put Ronaldo in a cricket field and ask him to do better than rakheem Cornwall just cause he’s supremely fit and rakheem Cornwall is not.
Fitness is the difference between Inzimam and Ponting. Fitness is a mindset which you can't teach, it has to come from within.
Let's consider the legends of game (the absolute elite):
1. Sachin
2. Viv
3. Lara
4. Wasim
5. Ponting
6. McGrath
All of them were fit. They might not be other sport athlete type fit but were fit enough to be the best. So to be the best you need good fitness, hard work and enormous talent.
Now consider the other examples of players who had talent but didn't focus on fitness:
1. Inzi
2. Shoaib (he will argue and convince the world his issues were because of coaches and selectors ruining him)
3. Sehwag
The above three had as much if not more talent than the first 6, but still rank 2 or more tiers below the top 6.
Why?
Because a player like SRT even when going through bad phase can knock the ball around and take singles to get over his bad phase. However a player like Inzi or Sehwag won't do it. Because his mindset (due to being lazy/unfit) is to hit out rather than grind through and get over bad phase.
In current situation take kohli, he isn't the best in the world in terms of power hitting. However he is so quick between the wickets and so fit that you don't realise when he reaches 40(40) by taking singles. Even in death overs if bowling is good or pitch is playing up a bit he takes 8-12 runs an over by just running hard. Granted that a person like Gayle on his day can demolish someone like Kohli but Kohli because of his fitness has evolved his game in such a manner he's more consistent and makes his team compete in most of the matches.
If you have to be the best you should have either good fitness or else you need to be in a team which can hide your fitness (in case of bowlers). For a batsmen you have to have certain fitness level to be 'A+' category batsmen. Pakistan hasn't produced 'A+' category batsmen ever and only reason is the lack of fitness culture which hampered players like Anwar, Inzi to try and reach A+ level.
Others like YK had fitness and work ethic but lacked the talent.
Yousuf lacked work ethic and fitness both. Just couldn't get rid of his short comings.
Miandad was closest in terms of having everything but just fell 1 step short..