Whatever the cricket team, it is usually the case that fast bowlers are deployed to a field near the boundary in any test match. Sometimes they get a chance to field at positions like point, gully, or midwicket within the 30-yard circle, but it is rare to see a fast bowler deployed to field in the slips. New Zealand fast bowler Tim Southee is one of the few fast bowlers who do this and the reason for this is his ability to field in the slip region. He showed a glimpse of this by taking an amazing catch in the Galle Test against Sri Lanka, which surprised everyone.
In the first session of the third day of the first test match being played between Sri Lanka and New Zealand in Galle, Saudi stole the show with his fielding. After bowling out New Zealand in the first innings, the Sri Lankan team came out to bat in the second innings. It was only the third over of the innings when young fast bowler Will O'Rourke once again wreaked havoc. On the fifth ball of his over, opener Pathum Nissanka tried to play a shot but was defeated by the speed. The ball touched the edge of the bat and went towards the fourth slip.
Plucked out of thin air 🔝
— Sony Sports Network (@SonySportsNetwk) September 20, 2024
Sensational from Tim Southee 👏 🔥#SonySportsNetwork #SLvNZ #TimSouthee pic.twitter.com/iu2TiyscOM
The whole game happened here. If there was a fielder in the fourth slip, he would have easily caught this catch but there was no fielder there. In such a situation, hardly anyone would have expected that this catch could be taken but this is what Saudi is stationed in the slip for. The New Zealand captain, who was in the third slip, took a long dive in the air to his right and caught the catch with one hand. Saudi's timing was so great that even the fast-moving ball stuck to his hand and Nissanka was out. This catch blew everyone's senses and no one could believe their eyes.
Despite this wicket falling in just the third over, former Sri Lankan captain Dimuth Karunaratne and Dinesh Chandimal managed the innings and by the end of the second session, they had scored 134 runs after losing only 1 wicket. As far as this match is concerned, after bowling out Sri Lanka for 305 runs in the first innings, New Zealand scored 340 runs in their first innings and gained a lead of 35 runs. On the third day, Daryl Mitchell scored 55 runs from their side, while Glenn Phillips played a quick unbeaten innings of 49 runs. On the other hand, left-arm spinner Prabhat Jayasuriya took the maximum number of 4 wickets from Sri Lanka.
