Top 5 fielders in world cricket at the moment

Cricket has always been exciting and it's time we recognize that fact. For long, cricket has been undervalued due to the growing unpopularity of Test cricket. Little things such as breathtaking catches, splendid sixes and those cartwheeling stumps make the day of any true cricket fan and dissing aside the game on a few instances is really unfair.

T20 cricket has been advantageous for cricket in many ways. Today, we see a more attacking brand of cricket which was lacking, let's say about 8-9 years ago. Its impact on fielding is most talked about and rightly so. The overall standards of fielding have grown by leaps and bounds and it's no surprise that a side's fielding often gets wickets against the run of the play.

Catches win you matches and it's pretty much true. Let's take a moment and remember the time when Gibbs dropped Steve Waugh early on in his innings in 1999. South Africa lost the match that they should have won, which dashed their World Cup hopes to the ground. Catches form a crucial aspect of the game. In the recently-concluded Test series between India and England, we saw many dropped catches that eventually decided the fate of the games. There were as many as 28 dropped catches in the 5-match series and that number is just beyond belief.

Having established this, let's have a look at the top 5 fielders in world cricket at the moment.

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#5 Bhuvneshwar Kumar

One of the most underrated fielders

In my opinion, Bhuvi's fielding is very underrated. Apart from being an excellent new ball bowler and a death overs specialist, he has shown us time and again that he possesses a safe pair of hands and can take catches even in the most crunch situations. Bhuvi has been an excellent fielder cum bowler for India as well as for his IPL side, SRH.

Bhuvaneswar Kumar is agile and can cover large distances in a short span of time, making himself a valuable asset in the field. His outfield skills are too good for a bowler and is certainly a benchmark for many.

#4 Ben Stokes

One of the safest fielders straight down the ground

The versatile all-rounder from England has been a revelation to the England squad. Stokes has provided the England team with the long lost balance and he is a very reliable player at any stage of the game. Stokes is an effective batsman and brings an X-factor with the ball. He chips in with wickets every now and then, and is the crucial partnership-breaker in the middle-overs.

Stokes also has the unique ability to bat according to the situation. His fielding is very consistent and more importantly, he is the safest fielder in the English set-up. Stokes is one of the best catchers in the game at the moment and his ground fielding is good too. Stokes is at his best when he is in the circle and he is very agile. More often than not, Stokes doesn't let anything get away from him.

#3 Kane Williamson

The Kiwi captain's fielding standards are pretty high

The Kiwi captain carries a short stature. However, it has been a more of an advantage to him than a disadvantage. The New Zealand captain is one of the best captains in the world at the moment, if not the best. His calm and attacking approach on the cricket field is a great asset to any team.

Kane has taken some marvelous catches time and again and is a very good slip-catcher. His catch in the slips to dismiss Broad during England's nightmare of 58 all-out, just cannot be forgotten. Kane can field anywhere in the field and taking him on would be a very bad idea.

#2 Virat Kohli

Virat's fielding has proved to be an inspiration for his team

One of the fittest players at the moment, Virat is also a classy fielder. Virat's agility has grown a lot over the years and it has helped his fielding by a big margin. Virat's throws from the deep are more often than spot-on and his catching skills are good too.

If Virat fails with the bat, he will try to make sure that he doesn't let anything get past him in the field. His reaction time to catches are beyond belief and his dedication towards improving the fitness levels in the Indian squad has not only helped his but also his side's fielding standards.

#1 Ravindra Jadeja

The best in the world

This is a no-brainer. Jadeja is by far the best Indian fielder and the best in the world at the moment. One has to wait for ages to see Jadeja drop a catch because he just takes them all. Jadeja is the best when it comes to fielding in the 30-yard circle and for some, he's even better when he's out there in the deep or at long-on. Taking Jadeja's left-arm on is a bad option and taking on his throws from the deep is a suicidal move.

His catches under pressure more often than not, leave everyone surprised. He is as cool as ice under the ball. His fitness levels have improved tremendously and he has turned out to be a reliable batsman down the order since his comeback. Jadeja has the capability to pull off something special every time he steps into the field.

This is the list of the top 5 fielders of the game at the moment. Let us know your valuable opinions in the comment box below.