The 34-year-old Stoinis has adopted a ketogenic diet, characterized by high fat and low carb intake.One of his preferred dishes, as reported by ‘cricket.com.au,’ includes baked oats infused with protein.
Velton Saldanha, originally from Mumbai and trained in French cuisine, is the chef responsible for crafting Stoinis’s meals while he is in India. He prepares these specially tailored dishes within the kitchens of the Australian team’s hotel, ensuring Stoinis adheres to his dietary requirements.”Quite a few of the Indian boys do it, that’s where I got the idea,” Stoinis told cricket.com.au’s ‘Unplayable Podcast’.
“I’ve always been quite strict with my food and all that stuff in my preparation.”
While the Australian team already has its dedicated chef managing their meals during their travels across the country, Stoinis has taken an extra step in his relentless pursuit of peak performance.
“Garlic naan is out. Gluten-free banana bread and shepherd’s pie with roasted cauliflower mash are in. A roast butter chicken, the intersection of Saldanha’s French training and his Indian heritage, has also been a hit,” the report said.
“Stoinis is getting by on baked oats – at least for the small carbohydrate portion of his meticulously curated diet,” it said.
“By the end of the World Cup, Saldanha might be able to sell the ‘Stoinis Oats’ as a standalone dish.”
Stoinis was introduced to Saldanha, an experienced chef with a background in fine-dining restaurants in Chicago and New York, during this year’s Indian Premier League, thanks to a recommendation from his teammate at Lucknow Supergiants and Indian cricket star, KL Rahul.
Saldanha is the founder of Mumbai’s Chutney Collective, a culinary venture that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On the cricketing front, Stoinis has faced challenges in finding consistent form in this World Cup. He had to sit out the opening match due to a hamstring and quad concern. In the three matches he has participated in thus far, his scores have been 5, 20 not out and 21.
“I want to play for as long as I can. I want to take control of as many things as I can through my cricketing career,” said Stoinis.
“We travel a lot and we’re obviously away from our comfort zone. We’re in different time zones, we’re in different beds, we’re in different hotels – we’re not exactly by the beach in Perth, having a coffee and that sort of stuff.”
He views investing in a personal chef as a worthwhile expenditure.
“I’m more than happy to invest in myself and in my environment. I don’t see that stuff, which some people do, as a waste (of money). I’m happy to invest in my own chef or invest in my own batting coach or invest in my own sports psychologist – that’s just the way I see things.”
(With PTI inputs)