Good fielders can sometimes make all the difference in the world. They can curb runs, put pressure on the batsmen and pull out blinders from nowhere. The Indian fielding side is one of the best units today thanks to a lot of groundwork put in by the likes of Dhoni, who prioritised fielding as an aspect for the team to improve on.
Having your best fielders in the right position is very important because they can give that little extra compared to the others. There are certain fielding positions that are extremely hard to man thanks to the volume of runs hit in that direction. These are:
Silly point:
The silly point is another difficult position as the fielder is very close to the batsman and is at risk of getting hit. They do get a lot of protection in the form of pads and helmets as they can get injured otherwise.
Silly point fielders also have to have high concentration levels as a tiny edge could pop up all of a sudden. They are also responsible for taking tough catches as balls can loop up and fly away from them.
Cheteshwar Pujara, Hashim Amla and Ponting are excellent silly point fielders.
Point:
The point fielder is one of the most crucial positions in cricket. He has a big role as batsmen who tend to cut the ball hit in their direction a lot. Most teams have their best fielders at point as they can dive around and stop boundaries.
They also need to take some tough catches considering the speed at which deliveries get cut. Jadeja, Kohli and Mohammad Kaif have all been superb point fielders for India.
Gully:
Another position that is extremely hard to field in is the gully. Similar to the point but a little bit more square, the gully position fielders need excellent reflexes. They work together with the point fielder to ensure batsmen do not get easy boundaries.
Gully has evolved nowadays where captains prefer having a second slip in place as gully fielders need to be of top-notch quality. Jonty Rhodes and Yuvraj Singh have been superb gully fielders.
Slip:
Standing at slip, especially to a spinner is one of the hardest positions as you only get a fraction of a second to judge a catch. Most of the times, a thick edge could induce a lot of speed and slips need to be alert at all times.
Some of the best fielders have been superb at slip, including the likes of Rahul Dravid, Suresh Raina and Mark Waugh to name a few. These fielders can sometimes pull off blinders and display superb athleticism that can liven up any contest.
Extra cover:
A deep fielding position, extra cover requires fielders to have a strong throwing arm and a willingness to run. Also, most of the balls hit in that direction tend to go really high, so they need to have great catching ability too.
Good extra cover fielders are an asset as they can stop boundaries with their speed and agility and save crucial runs in a match. Virat Kohli, AB De Villiers and Brendon McCullum have all shone at that position.
Forward short leg:
Forward short leg is arguably the most difficult fielding position. It not only requires a high level of skills and concentration, but also a lot of courage and faith in bowler, because one and delivery can lead to big bruises on the body of a fielder.
By Rohit Nair
