
Jonty Rhodes made fielding important and worth watching
during his time in international cricket. Currently, he is enjoying his time
coaching Mumbai Indians and spending his time in India.
Currently he is the mentor for TNPL franchise Ruby Trichy
Warriors and Cricbuzz.com had a chat with the South African fielding sensation.
Here are some excerpts from the interview.
On being asked about AB de Villiers missing the England Test
series which South Africa lost 3-1, Rhodes said that every player has the right
to manage his own career. However, he did say that for South Africa, they are
waiting for him to come back and are plugging gaps in the meantime.
He also explained the De Villiers had decided to retire from
Tests long while back.
Rhodes said, "I think
he wanted to retire a while back from Test cricket, but Cricket South Africa
persuaded him to stay on. Before 2016, he was talking to people about his Test
future. In South Africa, people are critical because they don't see the IPL
mechanism."
"They think cricketers
are trying to make as much money as possible and it's often at the expense of
national call-ups. The BCCI is the only cricket board that doesn't allow their
players to play in other competitions. But our guys go from IPL to CPL to
England to Big Bash. And they play Tests and ODIs whenever they can,"
Rhodes continued.
Rhodes rated Yuvraj, Kaif and Harbhajan as the best Indian
fielders during his playing time. Currently he rates MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli,
the fittest and best fielders in the Indian team.
"The key elements in
Kohli's team selection are fitness and fielding. He is leaving players out who
he deems not fit enough, no matter how good they are," said Rhodes.
About the success of Women's cricket due to India reaching
the finals, Rhodes said, "Before India
won the World T20 in 2007, they were saying T20 is pyjama cricket. Suddenly,
India won T20 and they say let's have it here! From that perspective, seeing
the success of the Indian ladies will go a long way in the growth of the game."
Jonty Rhodes rated Peter Kirsten as his inspiration to
become a better fielder.
