All great cricketing teams are defined largely owing to their fielding legacy. Teams that dominated eras always boast of having a gun fielding side. The Windies in the 70s and 80s, the Aussie unit of 90s and 2000s, you name the side they would have fielding match winners. Teams like South Africa, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka have constantly been fantastic fielding sides. Here in this article, we have provided the Top 10 Best Catches In T20 History.
India became a fine fielding outfit since the turn of the 21st century. The evolution of the game demanded fielding brilliance. T20 cricket at its breakneck speed saw fine pieces of fielding. The margins being less in T20Is makes the fielding part more crucial. A great catch ends up being the biggest differentiating factor in a T20.
We look at 10 such best catches in T20 history:
#10 Ravi Bishnoi (IPL 2021)
Ravi Bishnoi took the catch of the IPL last season. He was stationed at deep square leg for Sunil Narine. Narine attempted a pull shot towards the deep midwicket region. Bishnoi hared across the turf from square leg to mid-wicket covering the great ground. The ball despite all his preparation seemed to be beyond him. But at the last moment, he put in a brilliant dive to pluck out a blinder. He was rightfully awarded the IPL catch of the tournament reward. This makes it a true candidate to be a part of the Top 10 Best Catches In T20 History.
#9 Shahid Afridi (T20 World Cup 2009)
Shahid Afridi was one of Pakistan’s key players in their T20 World Cup-winning campaign in 2009. He put in impressive performances in the semifinal and the finals to take Pakistan across the line. But one of his best moments during the World Cup was the catch that he took of Scott Styris. Afridi picked a flyer running backwards from mid-on. The catch seemed improbable at once but the man with the golden arm made it happen.
#8 Trent Boult (IPL 2018)
Virat Kohli was looking in solid touch in IPL 2018. He looked set for a long haul in a game against Delhi. Kohli flicked a ball pitched on middle stump beautifully towards square leg. The timing on it was pristine. But Trent Boult fielding at deep square leg plucked a catch out of thin air. He caught the ball backwards that left not only Kohli but even Boult stunned. It was athleticism at its very best.
#7 Kieron Pollard (CPL 2015)
Kieron Pollard is one of the main characters of the game. One can’t keep him out of the action for far too long. Pollard welcomed his counterpart Mahela Jayawardene to the crease with an unusual field setup. He stationed himself at silly point-point. It is an area that is hardly deployed in the T20Is.
But Pollard went against norms. He backed his spinner to bowl according to the plan. Pollard had caught Jayawardene unawares. Mahela Jayawardene tamely poked at a delivery outside off-stump. Pollard showed tremendous reflexes to catch the dipping ball. It remains one of the highlights of the CPL.
#6 Hardik Pandya (IPL 2018)
Hardik Pandya was one of Mumbai Indians’ biggest cornerstones. He was part of Mumbai’s epic 4 title wins in 6 years. Pandya is a livelier on the field. He manned the long off region while fielding for Mumbai Indians. Glenn Maxwell carved a ball towards deep extra cover. Pandya ran almost 40 metres to his left and made a tumbling dive. He fell head first on the ground. But he did all this while taking a stunning catch.
#5 Suresh Raina (IPL 2016)
Suresh Raina was someone who made fielding look ridiculously easy. He had bucket hands. Raina along with Ravindra Jadeja and Virat Kohli took Indian fielding to the next level. He was a different beast in the IPL during his glory years. Raina leading the Gujarat Lions in 2016 was pure bundle of energy. The Lions were on the charge against Kolkata in a league game. Raina upped the pressure by having a slip wherein he positioned himself. The ball arrived at him on cue but it was well above his height. Raina made a leaping acrobatic attempt to catch the ball. He did manage to grab it as he always did.
#4 AB de Villiers (IPL 2018)
Alex Hales, the SRH opener was on charge against RCB. He danced down the track to Gurkeerat Mann, the part-time off spinner. Little did he know what was to come next. AB de Villiers was standing at deep midwicket. The ball was travelling. It felt as if it would land 5 metres beyond the boundary line. But an outstretched ABD leapt and jumped and picked the ball from virtually nowhere. The Chinnaswamy stadium erupted. ABD once again proved that he was a superhuman.
#3 Kieron Pollard (IPL 2014)
The big man from the Caribbean features again on this list. It is arguably the catch of the IPL. Pollard was fielding at long on while his compatriot Kevon Cooper was on strike. Cooper wanting to smash Harbhajan Singh, the off spinner out of the ground charged down the track. The ball was well on its way to the stands. Pollard sprung into action. He first spiralled the ball inside the boundary. The 6 feet 6 inch West Indian then jumped inside to take the catch from moments of the ground. It remains one of the most iconic moments of the much celebrated league.
#2 Dinesh Karthik (T20 World Cup 2007)
India were defending a modest target of 153 against home side, South Africa in a must-win game. They had to bowl and field out of their skins to make it to the next round. Graeme Smith, the Proteas captain was crucial to the home team’s chances. He had a wild swing at an away going delivery. Dinesh Karthik fielding at second slip dived spectacularly to take the catch. The moment was magical. It left the home side stunned. India out bowled and out-fielded Africa to knock them off the tournament.
#1 S. Sreesanth (T20 World Cup 2007)
As compared to other catches in the list, this one isn’t brilliant nor breathtaking by any means. But it is the catch that was taken under immense pressure. It was a catch that eventually led to the creation of a multi-billion dollar league. Sreesanth, the maverick Indian pacer was fielding at short fine leg. Misbah-ul-Haq attempted an ill-fated scoop shot with 6 runs to win for Pakistan.
An eyes of a billion people were on Sreesanth. He was the one that stood between history and heartbreak. But the stars were aligned in India’s favour. Sreesanth took the catch cleanly and calmly. The resultant reactions were euphoric. India won the inaugural T20 World Cup. This changed the sport itself forever. All it took was one catch to transform everything!
