Asia Cup | We go back to the drawing board: Suryakumar on dropped catches 

If there was a lapse for India to address during its six-wicket victory over Pakistan in the Asia Cup’s Super Four battle on Sunday, it was the fielding.

The Men in Blue dropped as many as they caught on the night, notably providing Pakistan opener Sahibzada Farhan a let-off on zero in the first over of the game.

Farhan went on to make a half-century in Pakistan’s total of 171 for five. If not for that reprieve by Abhishek Sharma, the Indian southpaw’s job with the willow in the second innings may have been even easier.

Although the all-rounder from Punjab made amends with his pyrotechnics in the chase, India will seek clinical execution in all three departments going into next year’s T20 World Cup.

Abhishek’s drop at third-man was the first of four chances that went begging. While the 25-year-old dropped Farhan a second time at long-on — albeit a much tougher grab — Kuldeep Yadav and Shubman Gill were guilty of spilling sitters.

Ring of fire challenge

Before the match versus Oman, India fielding coach T. Dilip had highlighted the challenge of taking high catches at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. The venue is known as the ‘ring of fire’ because the floodlights are mounted around the rim of the dome rather than on tall poles.

“One of the challenges we encounter at the Dubai Stadium is that the lights are slightly different,” Dilip had told the BCCI website. “The challenge with the ‘ring of fire’ is that there is a tendency to lose sight of the ball for a split second.”

When asked after Sunday’s win whether the floodlights were causing an issue, India skipper Suryakumar Yadav said: “Not really. We have got a few sessions here. We have done a lot of fielding practice. It can’t be an excuse. If the catches have gone, they have gone. We go back to the drawing board. We do a good session again and come back”.