Has shoddy present within the discipline let Sri Lanka down? Sure, says fielding coach
Sri Lanka nonetheless have an exceedingly slim likelihood of profitable the sport, because of a floor that appears prone to take vital activate Thursday morning. But Pakistan’s wonderful catching has meant that Sri Lanka have solely 130 to defend.
“I think fielding is the reason why we’re in this situation in this Test,” Nawaz stated. “We dropped too many catches. We would have got them out for 300 in the first innings if we’d held our catches.
“In the second innings a few half-chances went Pakistan’s method and so they held on to it. That additionally had an influence on us. Fielding’s essential and has all the time been essential. It’s been disappointing, the usual of fielding we have displayed.”
Imam had magicked up a wicket in the first innings as well, Samarawickrama the victim, again caught at short leg. This time the chance had gone high above Imam’s head, but he leapt up to snaffle it in the dying stages of the first day.
“We had camps earlier than we got here right here, and our predominant focus was our fielding,” he said. “We ready very well for it, and that is paying off now. Catches win matches is one thing we have heard since I used to be a baby. When you are taking these sorts of catches, it will make a distinction within the recreation.”
Sri Lanka, meanwhile, had dropped Saud Shakeel twice during his 208 not out – both pretty straightforward chances. Nishan Madushka had grassed one at leg slip to reprieve Shakeel on 93. When Shakeel top-edged a slog sweep on 139, Mathews made good ground to get to it on the deep-midwicket boundary but shelled that catch as well.
There was, as well as, the missed stumping of Naseem Shah within the first innings – Samarawickrama the offender on that event. Shakeel and Shah would add one other essential 26 to their excellent ninth-wicket stand earlier than he was dismissed.