Published: May 14, 2015, 05:07 PM (IST)
Edited: May 14, 2015, 05:47 PM (IST)
The Indian Premier League (IPL) has redefined the sport in many ways and one aspect has been fielding. The fielding at the international level has certainly gone up. Over the years, the tournament has given the fans several enchanting moments to cherish. One such example was witnessed in the 43rd match of the IPL between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI), where Lendl Simmons took a stunner to dismiss Faf du Plessis.
CSK were batting first and were looking to gain momentum at 104 for three at start of the 15th over. It was the second delivery of the over by Mitchell McClenaghan, when du Plessis tried to flick one over short fine leg but failed to get enough elevation to get it over man standing there. Just when it looked, it would lob over Simmons, who was navigating the short fine-leg area, he took leap, timed his jump to precision and grabbed the leather. The hallmark of this catch was the timing of his jump and the balance which he maintained to ensure that the ball wouldn’t pop out. The catch would have certainly made his fielding coach Jonty Rhodes proud. This catch proved to be vital as du Plessis carries a huge reputation with him in Twenty20 cricket and was starting to look dangerous.
In fact, in the match prior, against Delhi Daredevils, Simmons had taken another stunner to dismiss Yuvraj Singh and on Sunday, he repeated the brilliance when hecaught Chris Gayle in a seemingly impossible catch. Coming back to the Chennai encounter, Simmons played a vital knock of 38 as MI won the contest by six wickets.
