“It’s easy to sit in the commentary box and criticise” - R Sridhar backs Yashasvi Jaiswal despite multiple dropped catches

Former Indian fielding coach R Sridhar has come out backing the Indian fielder Yashasvi Jaiswal, who dropped four important catches in the Leeds Test as England went on to win the game by five wickets to take an early series lead by 1-0.

While Jaiswal received a lot of flak on social media and from former cricketers, he received backing from Sridhar, who stated that Jaiswal is an excellent fielder, but the conditions in England were the reason behind dropping multiple catches.

Sridhar asserted that the Dukes ball usually tends to wobble a lot as it comes towards the fielder. Moreover, he also added that Leeds has a slope which runs down from the pavilion side to the Kirkstall Lane end, making things tough for the fielders to catch.

“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 Dukes’ 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.

Furthermore, Sridhar reckoned that Jaiswal is an excellent gully fielder, who makes no mistakes in that particular area. However, he stated he had two bad games in Melbourne and Leeds. Nevertheless, he pointed out his exceptional fielding efforts against Bangladesh in Kanpur.

“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 stated.

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