Malachi Jones, the Bermuda all-rounder, has been busy “putting in the extras” to restore his fitness to the levels he enjoyed at the 2007 World Cup when he announced himself on the international stage.

At the age of just 17, Jones became an overnight star of Bermudian sport after dismissing India’s Robin Uthappa, caught spectacularly at slip by Dwayne Leverock, to become only the second cricketer to take a wicket with his first World Cup ball.

While Jones has continued to experience relative success since “that ball” for both club and country, he suspects that he has slightly rested on his laurels, and as a result not been able to consistently produce the destructive performances of which he is capable.

In an effort to redress his perceived lack of fitness, Jones has enlisted the help of Kenny Thompson, the former Bermuda football coach and self-confessed fitness fanatic, to ensure that he is raring to go for this month’s Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division Three tournament in Malaysia.

Thompson, the BAA director of football, has spent four weeks putting the Willow Cuts captain through his paces during multiple weekly sessions at Goose Gosling Field, working primarily on his strength and conditioning.

“I wasn’t feeling as young as I should have been and my physical appearance wasn’t looking great, either,” said Jones, who is 25.

“I decided I needed to improve my fitness and get back in shape, so I contacted Kenny who I’ve always known to be a good coach, as I heard he was doing a lot of personal trainer stuff.

“We’ve been doing intense hour sessions three times a week, working on my strength, core and endurance, and I’m feeling much better. I’ve also been trying to eat right and I feel like my old self again.

“I think the fittest I’ve ever been was in 2007; I’m trying to get as close to that level as I can.”

Jones, who has played 12 one-day international matches for Bermuda, accepts that modern cricketers are stronger, faster and more agile than ever before and feared that he was in danger of being left behind.

“Cricket has become a much faster-paced game, whether that’s 20 overs or 50 overs,” he said.

“The game is changing every year and I was struggling a bit because cricket’s a much more physical sport than it used to be.”

Bermuda’s 14-man squad leaves the Island next week for what is expected to be a difficult competition.

The top two from the six-team tournament advance to Division Two in Namibia in January 2015, and Jones is adamant that claiming a promotion berth is not beyond Bermuda.

“The main goal is to qualify for Division Two,” Jones said. “I think in terms of our talent we can compete. It’s just sometimes we let ourselves down mentally and the way we go about executing our goals.

“I feel our opponents are often fitter than us and prepare much better for tournaments. Talent-wise, however, I think we can compete with them.

“If we take our aggressive mentality out on the field, I don’t think there are too many teams that can beat us. It’s down to us and how much we want it.”

Jones and two of his Bermuda team-mates, Dion Stovell and Allan Douglas Jr, found themselves at the centre of controversy after risking injury before the trip to Malaysia by playing domestic football last weekend.

Those players have since been given a stern warning by the Bermuda Cricket Board, with Jones, who scored twice in Somerset Trojans’ 3-2 win over Dandy Town, insisting that he will not be take any part against Flanagan’s Onions tomorrow night.

“[The BCB] put an end to that,” he said. “I’ll see Somerset when I get back.”