India will take on Australia in the first ODI of the three-match series at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Friday, March 17, as part of the preparation for the 2023 ICC Men’s ODI World Cup at home. India fielding coach T Dilip believes that the Indian fielders have improved by leaps and bounds in terms of the successful ratio of direct hits.
Regular skipper Rohit Sharma will miss the first match of the series due to family commitments. Star all-rounder and vice-captain Hardik Pandya will lead the squad in the absence of Rohit. Shreyas Iyer, who didn’t bat in the final Test match against Australia, was ruled out of the upcoming white ball series, and the team management hasn’t named his replacement yet.
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That’s One Area We Will Keep Improving – T Dilip
In a press conference ahead of the 50-over series, T Dilip said that the Indian fielders have improved in terms of a successful ratio of direct hits, citing KL Rahul’s direct hit to dismiss Litton Das during the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia.
“There are certain areas where we have certainly improved over a period of time. If you look at the number of direct-hit percentage in the World Cup and that one direct hit from KL Rahul changed the course of the match,” Dilip told the media after India’s optional training session in Mumbai at the Wankhede Stadium.
“That’s something we are looking at as a group and if you look at it’s overall ratio, even though there are no run outs, the number of times we have hit the stumps has improved a bit. That’s one area we will keep improving,” he added.
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KL Rahul Is A Wonderful Player – T Dilip
Dilip said that KL Rahul would continue to bat at No. 5 as a wicketkeeper-batsman and add balance to India’s middle order. He further added that Rahul proved himself as a wicketkeeper-batsman and that it is not difficult to work on his wicketkeeping.
“We all know that KL Rahul is a wonderful player. He has a proven record. Even in ODIs, in the middle-order, he has proven enough as a batter. As a wicketkeeper, he gets a lot of balance into the team because he gives advantage.”
“Since he is not someone who has picked the gloves just now he has been doing that since a younger age he adds a lot of things. Not that difficult to work on his wicket-keeping, apart from refining a few aspects.”
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