Most Catches In Test Cricket By A Specialist Fielder

Dixit Bhargav | 01/07/2023
Most Catches In Test Cricket By A Specialist Fielder

Former England captain Joe Root has jumped a spot in the list of most catches in Test cricket by a specialist fielder. Root, 32, replaced his former captain Alastair Cook to occupy the sixth position in the below mentioned elite list.

It all happened on the fourth day of the ongoing second Ashes 2023 Test against Australia at Lord’s. Stationed at short leg, an unusual fielding position for a cricketer playing his 132nd Test, Root grabbed an absolute thriller of a catch to surpass Cook.

With English fast bowlers troubling the Australian batters with a barrage of short deliveries on the penultimate day of the match, Root’s quick reflexes allowed veteran pacer Stuart Broad to pick his second wicket of the day.

Directed perfectly into Travis Head‘s (7) body, Broad’s short ball forced the left-handed batter to play the ball towards Root. With the ball some distance away from him, an airborne Root managed to cling on to it with his left hand.

A list dominated one-sided by batters, it comprises some absolute greats of the sport. Root, who is already part of some batting record lists in cricket, is making his way into fielding records as well now.

One of the two Englishmen in the list, Root’s next target isn’t too far away from him. All he needs are six more catches in this format to outdo former Australia batter Mark Waugh from the fifth position. Assuming that he does the same in the near future, Root will be part of a Top Five which also consists legends such as Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis, Mahela Jayawardene and Rahul Dravid.

Most Catches In Test Cricket By A Specialist Fielder (Updated On July 28, 2023)

Player Team Span Matches Innings Catches Maximum
Rahul Dravid India / ICC 1996-2012 164 301 210 3
Mahela Jayawardene Sri Lanka 1997-2014 149 270 205 4
Jacques Kallis South Africa / ICC 1995-2013 166 315 200 4
Ricky Ponting Australia 1995-2012 168 328 196 3
Joe Root England 2012-present 135 255 182 4
Mark Waugh Australia 1991-2002 128 245 181 4
Alastair Cook England 2006-2018 161 300 175 3
Stephen Fleming New Zealand 1994-2008 111 199 171 5
Graeme Smith South Africa / ICC 2002-2014 117 225 169 5
Brian Lara West Indies 1990-2006 131 241 164 4
Post Edited By: Dixit Bhargav
Ashes 2023 England Joe Root Stuart Broad Travis Head

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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