Shivnarine Chanderpaul knows a thing or two about keeping yourself in good nick.
With 164 Tests and 11,867 runs to his name, the West Indies legend has drawn on all the tricks of the trade to keep performing at a consistently high level.
He is similarly experienced in knowing that there are fine margins between making a bumper game-changing century or a morale-crushing low score.
An unexpected crack in the pitch, a bead of sweat in your eye or just a slight lapse in concentration: the margin of error for those responsible for racking up the runs are much wider than most.
And speaking to Betway alongside former England team psychologist Steve Bull, Chanderpaul discussed how modern day cricket is more unforgiving than ever from a batsman’s perspective.
“These days bowlers study you more – it’s not that easy,” he said. “Bowlers can tell when you’re struggling.
“In difficult conditions, you might be able to leave a few, but one or two you might nick off. It depends how long you’re able to stay out there, if you can get lucky and miss those balls.”
Even if you do get lucky, Chanderpaul says cashing in and not resting on your laurels is the best way to play the odds. And if not? Well, hard work is the only medication for a bad run of form.
“I would always go out and play a bit harder even if my place wasn’t on the line,” he said.
“I would just fight as hard as I could, try and bat as much as I could…you don’t want to be in that situation when you’re being put under pressure.
“If I was struggling, I would be in the nets, hitting some balls. If I don’t feel good about it, I’ll do the work until I start feeling good.”
