You can't drop sitters at this level
In T20 cricket we have now reached a stage where fielding standards are expected to be high; where really, an ordinary fielder rather than a brilliant one, should stand out
George Binoy
25-Feb-2013
In T20 cricket we have now reached a stage where fielding standards are expected to be high; where really, an ordinary fielder rather than a brilliant one, should stand out. That hasn’t happened because the fielding has been pretty average and that is disappointing, writes Harsha Bhogle in the Indian Express.
Jonty Rhodes threw some light on it a few days ago when he talked about the difference between playing on the coast (Capetown, Port Elizabeth) and playing on the highlands (Johannesburg, Pretoria) or the highveld as they are called here. Because of the high altitude the ball travels further and so fielders might find the ball going a bit behind them as they wait for it. More interestingly, he said, the ball comes down much faster than you think it is going to and so you can be caught out of position. The obvious solution therefore is to practise a lot of skiers. Now while Jonty’s local knowledge, and his enormous skill, clears the air a bit, it still doesn’t explain why fielders are not catching more high balls in practice. Or maybe they are and it isn’t working.
George Binoy is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo