Former India fielding coach R Sridhar put his support behind Yashasvi Jaiswal after the Indian opener endured a nightmare while fielding during the 1st India vs England Test at Leeds. Jaiswal dropped catches at crucial junctures with India going down to the hosts by 5 wickets. While the youngster has faced plenty of flak for his fielding performances, so much so that it has overshadowed his century in the match, Sridhar backed Jaiswal to turn things around.
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“Going on the first tour to England and adapting and being a good slip fielder is not an easy task. You can practice all you want, but in the match, it’s quite challenging. The conditions are very cold, so the fingers get very numb. And secondly, the Duke’s ball wobbles a lot as it comes towards you. It’s not easy to catch,” he said to Sportstar.
“In England, sighting is very difficult. The Oval or Leeds are two of the most challenging grounds. Leeds has a slope which runs down from the pavilion side to the Kirkstall Lane end. And it’s very windy, and that messes with your rhythm and depth perception. Even England dropped catches. It’s not always about ability — often, it’s about conditions,” he added.
Sridhar said that Jaiswal was an excellent fielder who had just two bad matches, adding that it’s easy to sit outside the field of play and criticize.
“He’s actually an excellent gully fielder. Make no mistake. He’s had just two bad games — one in Melbourne, one here in Leeds. Otherwise, he’s been exceptional. The catches he took against Bangladesh in Kanpur were outstanding. It’s easy to sit in the commentary box and criticise, but these are challenging conditions, and for many of them, it’s their first experience of this environment,” Sridhar said.
Not just Jaiswal, even players like Ravindra Jadeja, Rishabh Pant and Bumrah also ended up dropping catches which ultimately paved the way for an England victory.
