India’s five-wicket defeat in the first Test at Headingley was disheartening, especially given the excellent efforts of the top-order hitters. While five centuries helped India reach England’s target of 371 runs, their performance with the ball and several wasted opportunities on the field, mainly dropped catches, cost them the game. First-innings centurion Yashasvi Jaiswal lost four catches, giving England plenty of chances to finish the chase.
Jaiswal dropped Ben Duckett twice, once at 11 and again at 97, as the England opener went on to score 62 and then a match-winning 149.
Yashasvi Jaiswal also failed to dismiss Ollie Pope (dropped on 60, scored 106) and Harry Brook (dropped on 83, scored 99).
These chances directly contributed to England scoring over 160 runs and eventually winning the match. However, R Sridhar, former India fielding coach, supported the youthful opener. Sridhar emphasised the challenge of adjusting to English conditions, particularly for a player on his first tour.
“Going on the first tour to England and adjusting to become a decent slip fielder is not an easy assignment. You can practise as much as you like, but the match is pretty hard. Because the temperatures are so low, the fingertips get quite numb. Second, the Dukes ball wobbles dramatically as it approaches you. It is not easy to capture. In England, eyesight is quite tough. The Oval and Leeds are two of the most difficult pitches.
“Leeds has a slope that descends from the pavilion to the Kirkstall Lane end. And it’s quite windy, which interferes with your rhythm and depth perception. Even England missed catches. “It’s not always about ability; it’s usually about circumstances,” Sridhar.
It’s easy to sit in the commentary box and criticise: Sridhar
Notably, the visitors dropped 10 catches in the match, their highest in a Test since 2011, with Jaiswal responsible for four. Those missed chances allowed England’s batters to capitalize on the chances and chase down the target with 14 overs in the day still left. Sridhar pointed out that Jaiswal is an exceptional fielder and slammed the critics who have been behind the southpaw ever since.
“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 added.
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