MUMBAI: Thirteen dropped catches in eight matches. Catching efficiency down to a below average 71.7 per cent. These numbers do not paint a rosy picture of this Indian team’s fielding. Over the years, the side have strived to raise the level of both their catching as well as ground fielding. But it's safe to say they have regressed.
Luckily for the Men in Blue, it has not affected the results so far thanks largely to the opposition not capitalising on the largesse. Take the must-win clash against West Indies. India dropped three catches but managed to get across the line, setting up the semifinal clash against England in Mumbai on Thursday.
However, a T20 World Cup semifinal against England at Wankhede is as big a challenge as it gets on multiple fronts. There are enough tactical challenges to address. Toss is expected to play a major role. There will be dew as well.
Taking all that into account, against a team that bats till No 11, India cannot afford to make the same mistakes. The margins of error, as it is, are minuscule for bowlers in India.
And at a ground like Wankhede, where the ball can travel, and top edges fly over the boundary ropes, things are not going to be easy. Not even for the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya, both of whom have played a fair bit of cricket at this venue.
Indian team management know it well. Bowling coach, Morne Morkel, admitted that India have spoken a lot about their fielding standards. “Obviously, fielding is something that we speak about a lot,” Morkel said in the pre-match press conference. “I think at times we are guilty, if we are honest, of giving away maybe 15-20 runs in the field. That's one aspect that we keep on working on and asking the guys to really step up on,” he added.
Morkel wants the team to put the last three weeks behind and focus on what is ahead. “There is always learning and growth that we take, but especially looking at this game here, we don't want to over-analyse too much of the past games played. I think, for us, it is just focusing on what we have got in front of us, and we have to be at our best tomorrow to beat England,” said the South African.
However, to execute that in the field is not straightforward. As with most cricket teams, India too have a few fielders who may not necessarily be the best option for fielding in certain areas. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav has not always gotten it right in this T20 World Cup. There have been occasions when strong outfielders have not been used to their strengths, fielding the right positions and vice versa. And on occasions, even the strongest of fielders have dropped catches.
One could remember the reaction of Pandya when two catches were dropped off his bowling — one each by Ishan Kishan behind the stumps and Kuldeep Yadav in the deep — during the group stage match against Pakistan. Morkel admitted that India have, perhaps, missed out on getting right fielders in right positions at all times. When asked how much the team morale goes down due to a dropped catch, Morkel had this to say: “Obviously, nobody looks to drop a catch on purpose. It's not like we don't train for it. There is a lot of focus going into our fielding, and that was one of the key points heading into the World Cup. The guys do train and work hard on our fielding. At times, is it a mindset thing? I can't answer that. But like I said, for us it's just to keep on doing the hard work, and really focusing on getting certain players into the hot spots and the right areas.
“At times, it's hard to do that because you are also working against an over-rate (to keep up with). So that's the responsibility that the players need to take on the field, is to find themselves in a position, in the hot zones, and to work a little bit extra. If we can get the right players in those positions, hopefully we can take the catches,” Morkel explained.
Come Thursday, India will be aiming to get the right fielders in the right spots and take all the catches that come their way. After all, the smallest mistake could cost them the spot at the home T20 World Cup final.