One of the things that T20 cricket has revolutionised in the game is the standard of catching, especially at the boundary lines. With batsmen going for sixes at every possible opportunity, the fielders have become as crucial as the bowlers in an attempt to save runs. And that is why we see all those juggling catches at the boundary line being taken with ease these days.
But England’s Jason Roy went a step further and pulled off a Jonty Rhodes-esque effort at the deep square leg boundary in a Bangladesh Premier League match for Sylhet Sixers against Chittagong Vikings.
The batsman was Yasir Ali who was on 27 in the Chittagong Vikings run-chase. His eyes must have lit up when he saw a rank short ball from Alok Kapali, and the pull shot looked primed to clear the boundary line.
But Roy had other ideas. Away from the camera, he had already sprinted close to 20 yards. He then flung himself in the air, to his left, and at full stretch, plucked the ball from mid-air with his left hand.
You are not likely to see a better catch in a cricket match all year.
Really, words can’t do justice to that magnificent display of athleticism.
Here are a few angles of the catch:
Sixers eventually won the match by 29 runs and that catch was one of the decisive moments in the run-chase.