'It's not easy to...': Ex-India coach fires back at Yashasvi Jaiswal's critics after Leeds fielding nightmare

Former India fielding coach, R Sridhar, has stepped up to defend Yashasvi Jaiswal in light of the backlash regarding his subpar fielding performance. The Indian opener faced difficulties in the field, resulting in the loss of four catch opportunities. The England batsmen capitalized on these errors, ultimately securing a 5-wicket victory in the series opener as they successfully chased a daunting target of 371. Although Yashasvi did achieve a century in the first innings, his missed catches significantly hindered Team India's prospects of winning the match.

Sridhar pointed out various factors contributing to Yashasvi's dropped catches. In an interview with Sportstar, the former India fielding coach remarked: "Going on the first tour to England and adapting and being a good slip fielder is not an easy task. You can practice all you want, but in the match, it's quite challenging. The conditions are very cold, so the fingers get very numb. And secondly, the Duke's ball wobbles a lot as it comes towards you. It's not easy to catch."

"In England, sighting is very difficult. The Oval or Leeds are two of the most challenging grounds. Leeds has a slope which runs down from the pavilion side to the Kirkstall Lane end. And it's very windy, and that messes with your rhythm and depth perception. Even England dropped catches. It's not always about ability - often, it's about conditions," he added.

In addition to Yashasvi, several other players also missed catches during the first Test match. Besides the subpar fielding, India's inadequate bowling contributed to their loss. The Indian bowlers were unable to defend a target of 371 in the fourth innings of the match. Prasidh Krishna, who took 5 wickets in the match, had an economy rate exceeding 6 in both innings. Shardul Thakur also proved to be expensive with the ball.

Jasprit Bumrah is expected to miss the second Test of the series to manage his workload. He will participate in only 2 more Tests in the series.

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