India’s fielding woes were a key factor in their unexpected loss to England in the opening Test at Leeds. After facing criticism for his errors, Yashasvi Jaiswal is reportedly being shifted out of the slip cordon by Gautam Gambhir and the coaching team.
While India’s top-order impressed with centuries from Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, and Rishabh Pant, the bowling relied too heavily on Jasprit Bumrah, and the fielding let them down. Jaiswal dropped four crucial catches, which proved costly.
In Monday’s training session, Sai Sudharsan, Karun Nair, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Shubman Gill rotated in the slip positions, with Nair taking first slip and others handling second and third slips. Meanwhile, Jaiswal worked separately with Gambhir and assistant coach Ryan Ten Doeschate on flat catching, with the possibility of him playing forward short leg or silly point.
Aussie legend Greg Chappell suggested that Jaiswal might be low on confidence, as the dropped catches didn’t appear to be technical errors, or he could be dealing with a hand injury.
“India missed several catches in Leeds, with Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ravindra Jadeja among those involved, though both are typically reliable fielders. The drops I saw didn’t seem to be due to technical flaws they just didn’t stick. This can happen to anyone. However, Jaiswal appears to be lacking confidence, or perhaps dealing with a hand injury. He appears to be hoping to catch the ball rather than anticipating it. One of his missed chances was a low, skimming catch while running in from the boundary arguably one of the hardest in cricket”
“With the rise of white-ball cricket, specialist slip fielders don’t get as many chances as they used to. This makes it even more important for catching practice to closely mimic game situations.”