5 best Indian fielders based on catches/innings ratio
While Indian cricket is known to have produced a number of great batsmen and a few fine bowlers, it has also given the sport some brilliant fielders. Although not all of them were the most athletic of the lot, it is their catching ability that set them apart from many others.
These men are known to have an uncanny knack of pulling off spectacular catches out of nothing. With them around, the bowlers felt more confident of picking wickets as they would even convert half chances into dismissals.
It is difficult to find a measure for judging who the best Indian fielders of all time have been. However, one of the factors which can help in arriving at a decision is taking a look at the ratio of catches per innings for Indian fielders who have over 50 international catches.
Here are the top 5 Indian fielders based on catches/innings ratio:
5. Mohammad Azharuddin
Catches/innings ratio - 0.512
Despite the events that transpired towards the end of his cricketing career, Mohammad Azharuddin will always be remembered as a fine batsman and one of India's best captains ever. Apart from all this, though, the Hyderabadi cricketer is also among the better Indian fielders of all time.
Including both Tests and ODIs, Azhar took to the field in 509 innings throughout his career and managed to pick up 261 international catches. This gives him a catches/innings ratio of 0.512, which is the fifth-best for an Indian fielder. The most catches that Mohammad Azharuddin grabbed in a single innings was 5 against Pakistan in a Test match.