Umesh Yadav showcased his batting and bowling skills on the second day of the third Test against South Africa in Ranchi. And he grabbed the spotlight as a fielder during South Africa’s first innings on Day 3.
On the penultimate delivery of the 38th over, Kagiso Rabada drove a Ravichandran Ashwin delivery to mid-off as Umesh attempted to stop the ball and ended up misfielding it.
Sensing an opportunity, Rabada decided to steal a single, but his move backfired as Yadav recovered quickly, collected the ball and threw it at the bowler’s end. The Indian pacer hit the bull’s eye, and Rabada was found well short of his crease.
Former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar who was on air at that moment, went on to say that one should never run on a misfield.
— Utkarsh Bhatla (@UtkarshBhatla) October 21, 2019
Earlier, Umesh removed the debutant George Linde for 37 and became the first Indian fast bowler to pick a minimum of 3 wickets in five successive innings at home. His bowling figures in the last five innings are as follows: 6/88, 4/45, 3/37, 3/22, and 3/40, respectively.