India’s fielding coach R Sridhar wants the Men in Blue to “out-field the opponents” in the upcoming games of the ongoing World Cup in England and Wales.
Addressing a press conference after India’s third World Cup game was washed out against New Zealand at Trent Bridge on Thursday, Sridhar said he would like the team “to out-field opponents not only in the next game but also in all games”
“And we expect our opponents to do the same. We should go out there with the best intensity as possible,” he said.
According to Sridhar, India’s fielding against Australia in the game which they won by 36 runs at The Oval was outstanding as the team came out with an “out-of-their-skins” display.
Though India posted a mammoth total of 352 runs on the board in 50 overs, the Indian fielders gave everything on the ground to make the target unassailable for the Aussies.
However, the Indian fielding coach feels that the players can better their direct-hits as they had missed quite a number of chances in their opening game against South Africa.
“We had over ten strikes and we hit only once. In some days, we hit three out of four. It’s a practice thing and a system best thing, but that is one area we work hard on in every session. Yeah, it’s a good observation. We should maybe get better on that and get a couple in the next game,” said the fielding coach.
Meanwhile, Sridhar also revealed how the players can keep themselves warmed-up in the English conditions to maintain their agility throughout the 50 overs.
India are currently standing at third sport with five points from three games after their clash with New Zealand got washed out on Thursday. India will next face arch-rivals Pakistan in what is expected to be a high-octane encounter in Manchester on June 16, Sunday.