In the 90s when fielding became an art in world cricket with the Jonty Rhodes era, if we look at the Indian team, South Africa, Australia, why even Zimbabwe, barring a handful of players, the Indian fielding is limited to an average standard that is likely to repeat mistakes, or is not entirely safe.
The playing days of the Indian team in the nineties, when the fielders in the circle pointed at the ball, the boundary fielders took the ball to the boundary, avoided diving to block a shot, and refused to jump in the air to take a catch.
When I started watching the game at that time.., the first time I saw a fielder who was doing his best while waiting for the pride of the Indian team was through former Indian captain Muhammad Azharuddin. Another one like that is Ajay Jadeja. Later, Robin Singh, who returned to the Indian team in the latter half of the nineties, also saw that excellent fielding.
It is also added that Sachin Tendulkar’s hands were completely believable, although he was not very good at diving.
However, another dimension to Mohammad Azharuddin’s game that stood out from his peers was his excellent fielding, who filled the field with stylish batting along with his excellent captaincy and an extreme version of arm-twisting.
Mohammad Azharuddin was one of India’s best fielders of all time along with Ajay Jadeja. Azhar was able to take some great catches in the slip cordon with his excellent reflexes and hit some amazing run outs.
His one-handed flick throw left many batsmen out and silenced the opposition fans. He is known as India’s best close fielder as the fielder who has taken the most catches (156) for the Indian team in ODI cricket.
Written by: Shameel Salah
Credit: Malayali Cricket Zone
2023-08-24 12:13:50
#Amazing #runouts #Indias #close #fielder #Southlive
