The trendsetters - 5 fast bowlers who are also great fielders

Fast bowlers have historically been known for being slow movers in the field. But with an increased emphasis on fielding in recent times, they have had no option but to work on their fielding and save a few runs in the field. The results of the work they have put in have started to take effect, with the number of bowlers who are an absolute liability in the field being reduced considerably of late.As far as the subcontinent is concerned, however, there is still a long way to go with a lot of bowlers continuing to overlook the importance of fielding in modern-day cricket. There are a few exceptions, however, like Mohit Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Wahab Riaz, who was surprisingly one of the best fielders for Lahore Lions in the recently concluded CL T20, and hopefully, there can be more such bowlers in the future as cricket is a better spectacle for it.Here are 5 fast bowlers who are good fielders (not in any particular order) -

#1 James Anderson

England’s James Anderson, apart from being an outstanding fast bowler, is also one of the best fielders in the world today.

What stands out about Anderson is the fact that, apart from being a very good outfielder and having a strong arm, he is reassuringly secure in the slips, making him a regular feature of the England slip cordon over the last few years.

After Paul Collingwood’s retirement from Test cricket in January 2011, Anderson also started standing at slip to the spinners – most notably Graeme Swann – but he vacated that position when the spinners are in action after a while due to being unable to couple his bowling workload with the concentration required to stand at slip.

All in all, Anderson has 57 catches from 99 Test matches in addition to 52 catches in ODI cricket.

#2 Trent Boult

While New Zealanders are known to be pretty athletic because of being encouraged to play a variety of outdoor sports from a very early age, Trent Boult, even by their high standards, is ridiculously agile, and has to be one of the best fielders going around in world cricket at the moment.

In a Test match against West Indies in December 2013, Boult pulled off a stunning one-handed catch off the bowling of Corey Anderson at backward point when Denesh Ramdin had smashed the cover off the ball and rightly thought that he had hit a boundary. And just to show that he is equally good on the boundary, he pulled off a magnificent catch which not only saved a certain six but also sent the dangerous Kieron Pollard back to the pavilion in a T20 international against West Indies in July 2014, with bowler Corey Anderson once again being the beneficiary of Boults brilliance.

#3 Tim Southee

New Zealand’s Tim Southee is slowly turning into one of the brightest all-rounders in the world game. His bowling exploits are well known, having taken 123 wickets from 34 Tests until now, but he is also starting to contribute with the bat and in the field on a regular basis, which is hugely encouraging from Kiwis’ perspective.

He averages just a touch under 20 with the bat and has taken 19 catches from his 34 Tests, a very healthy return for someone whose primary role in the side is as a bowler.

In a CLT20 match against Lahore Lions recently, he displayed his brilliance in the field as he caught a high ball on the edge of the mid-wicket boundary and relayed it back in for his team-mate Daryl Mitchell to grab it before losing his balance and tumbling over the boundary, thereby completing a brilliant relay catch.

#4 Mitchell Starc

Mitchell Starc, who is one of Australia’s most promising fast bowlers, is a very good fielder as well which is surprising, especially, for someone as tall and lanky as him.

The left-armer, who played for the Royal Challengers Bangalore during the last IPL season, not only played a critical role for his franchise with the ball in hand, by taking 14 wickets from as many games, but also took some good catches on the boundary at critical junctures of the season.

#5 Dale Steyn

Dale Steyn, without doubt, is the best fast bowler of this generation, as his 383 Test wickets at 22.56 illustrate, and he is not too bad a fielder as well. He has taken 19 and 22 catches from 75 Tests and 87 ODIs, respectively, and has had a tendency of pulling off some spectacular catches.

He also has a great throwing arm, which often prevents batsmen from taking an extra run on his arm, and has never shied away from throwing himself on the outfield in an effort to save runs for his side, thereby setting a fantastic example for the other members of the team.