“Grandfather of fielding” - Jonty Rhodes reacts to Shreyas Iyer’s stunning relay catch to dismiss Hardik Pandya

Former South Africa cricketer Jonty Rhodes praised Punjab Kings (PBKS) captain Shreyas Iyer for an exceptional fielding effort. The 31-year-old pulled off a stunning relay catch near the boundary ropes to dismiss Mumbai Indians (MI) skipper Hardik Pandya, earning appreciation for his awareness and athleticism.

Punjab Kings defeated Mumbai Indians at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday, April 16. During the 18th over of the first innings, PBKS fast bowler Marco Jansen bowled a slower ball. The MI skipper hit it off the toe end, and Shreyas completed a brilliant relay catch near the boundary.

Makes Me Feel Like the Grandfather of Fielding - Jonty Rhodes Lauds Shreyas Iyer

Shreyas Iyer showed outstanding athleticism by jumping in the air and throwing the ball to teammate Xavier Bartlett before crossing the boundary line. Mumbai Indians players Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav watched from the dugout, impressed by the effort that saved a certain six.

Taking to social media platform X, Jonty Rhodes praised the rising fielding standards in modern cricket. He said that such efforts from current players show the game has evolved and continues to set new benchmarks.

"Watching @ShreyasIyer15 perform that acrobatic fielding to assist in taking the “team catch “ made me appreciate how fielding has evolved since my retirement. For a long time, I felt like the “father of fielding”, but watching these modern athletes with their timing and awareness on the boundary line, makes me feel like the “grandfather of fielding”!" Jonty Rhodes stated.

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I Spent 99% of My Career Fielding in the Inner Circle - Jonty Rhodes

Jonty Rhodes also spoke about his playing career, saying his fielding role was mainly inside the circle. He pointed out that boundary fielding became more important later, especially after spectacular efforts from players like Kieron Pollard and Glenn Maxwell.

"I spent 99% of my career fielding in the inner circle, and when I started working as a fielding coach, there was no focus on the modern day “hotspots” on the boundaries. It was only when I started working with @mipaltan and saw Kieron Pollard, and then Glenn Maxwell, performing these incredible “airborne saves” on the boundaries that we started focusing on not only taking catches off balls that were already beyond the rope, but even saving the ball from going for a sixer, and forcing the batters to run only 1 or 2," he added.

"With impact players transforming the way that batters can continuously attack the bowling, even with the loss of 4-5 wickets, bowlers need to be backed up by their fielders, and Shreyas’ spectacular“catch and release” was a perfect example of that. But let’s face it; when your head coach is @RickyPonting, one of the greatest fielders in the game, it should not come as a great surprise to see such incredible feats in the field!" Jonty Rhodes concluded.

Watching @ShreyasIyer15 perform that acrobatic fielding to assist in taking the “team catch “ made me appreciate how fielding has evolved since my retirement. For a long time, I felt like the “father of fielding”, but watching these modern athletes with their timing and…

— Jonty Rhodes (@JontyRhodes8) April 18, 2026

Punjab Kings Beat Mumbai Indians by 7 Wickets in IPL 2026

Punjab Kings continued their strong run in IPL 2026 with a seven-wicket win over Mumbai Indians on April 16 at Wankhede Stadium.

The Mumbai Indians played without Rohit Sharma due to a hamstring injury and brought in Quinton de Kock. He scored an unbeaten 112 off 60 balls, while Naman Dhir added 50 off 31. The pair shared a 122-run stand for the third wicket, helping MI post 195/6 in 20 overs, with Arshdeep Singh taking 3/22.

Punjab Kings chased the target comfortably in 16.3 overs. Prabhsimran Singh led the effort with an unbeaten 80 off 39 balls, and captain Shreyas Iyer scored 66 off 35. Allah Ghazanfar picked up two wickets for the Mumbai Indians.

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