Virat Kohli Has Done A Lot Of Work On His Concentration And Focus; Rohit Sharma Is A Natural Slip Fielder - R Sridhar

Former India fielding coach R Sridhar recently talked about the fielding aspect of two India stalwarts – Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.

R Sridhar’s tenure, which began in 2016, came to an end at the conclusion of the T20 World Cup. He helped in the development of the fitness and fielding standards in the national side.

Speaking in an interview with The Economic Times on Sunday, R Sridhar revealed that Virat Kohli has done a great amount of hard work on his slip fielding. He highlighted that Kohli’s intensity in the field has a mental effect on the opposition, and hence he’s often seen fielding at the short cover or short mid-wicket.

“They (Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma) are, indeed [India’s best slip fielders]. But let me say they are two very different kind of athletes. Virat is extremely fit and agile and was always a very good outfielder,” R Sridhar said.

“Initially, we used his energy in front of the batsman’s eyes, say like in short cover or short mid-wicket because with his intensity he could literally intimidate the batters.

“But over time, and this was also because he was a certainty in the team, we wanted him to stand in the slips… He can come down really quick and has done a lot of work on his concentration and focus. Now you can see him go for the half chances and pluck them more often than not.”

We call Rohit sticky fingers: R Sridhar

Slip fielding comes naturally to Rohit Sharma, as R Sridhar says. He reckons Sharma has also worked hard on his slip catches and hardly misses any.

“Rohit, on the other hand, is a natural (slip fielder). We call him sticky fingers in the dressing room. At the same time, he works very hard on his slip catching and takes around 60 to 80 catches during each session to improve his slip catching,” he added.

Also Read: IND vs NZ 2021: VVS Laxman Distraught With Ajinkya Rahane’s Batting Technique After Another Failure