IPL: Top 4 instances when a fielder won a match for his team
The phrase 'catches win matches' has probably been overused, but is quite apt, especially in a game of inches that is the IPL. There have been some spectacular fielding displays in the IPL, efforts that could not have been imagined earlier. The fielding standards have gone up drastically, owing to the time spent on it in the training field. Every run matters, and general fitness levels in the sport is at its peak. There have, naturally, been culprits who have dropped sitters which have cost their teams the match; fielders are humans after all!
However, here we shall take a look at four fielding efforts that were not just spectacular, but also completely changed the course of the game.
#4 Martin Guptill
The 51st match of 2017 was an incredible run-fest. The Kings XI put up a whopping 230 runs on the board thanks to an onslaught by Saha and handy cameos by Guptill, Maxwell, Marsh and Axar. The match looked all but over at the innings break, but the Mumbai Indians came out all guns blazing. Simmons and Parthiv put up an incredible 99 run opening stand in just 8.4 overs. The Mumbai Indians had a deep batting lineup and seemed to be cruising to the biggest run chase in IPL history.
It was in the 10th over that Martin Guptill changed the game. Lendl Simmons was cruising and had already deposited four deliveries into the stands. He looked to have gotten his fifth six of the game as he hit Maxwell's delivery towards long-on. Guptill timed his jump to perfection, plucking the ball out of thin air to pull off a one-handed screamer. Guptill took two other catches in the game, which the Kings XI narrowly won by a margin of only 7 runs.
Watch the spectacular catch here.
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