Mumbai, Aug 31: Fielding standards in modern day cricket has picked up a lot. Fielding is not limited to a handful of teams, or a few players in a squad. It has become a vital aspect while choosing a squad in modern day cricket.
In women cricket too, fielding is a decisive factor these days. All good international sides do put a lot of stress on fielding.
But every time fielding on a cricket field becomes a point of discussion, former South African cricketer Jonty Rhodes automatically reminds cricket lovers as one of the best, or perhaps the greatest fielder in the history of the game.
He has been preaching, guiding, supervising and passing on tricks of fielding to next generation cricketers. He has been associated with a couple of Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises as well. He was earlier with the Mumbai Indians and his latest stint has been with the Lucknow Super Giants.
But in contemporary men's cricket, whom does Jonty think is the best fielder? The choices are definitely plenty. But, whom does he believe to be the best?
Well, according to Jonty Rhodes, India's Ravindra Jadeja is the best fielder in contemporary cricket. He reportedly stated that in a recent interaction with a section of press.
Jonty also stated that emergence of T20 cricket has raised the standard of fielding. Earlier, people spoke about fielding, but there were only 3-4 good individuals. But now, as a team, we have seen the growth of fielding go through the roof, he shared his thoughts.
To improve standard of fielding in domestic cricket, specialised full-time fielding coaches are a must, he reportedly recommended.
