Why are so many catches dropped in the IPL?

[Texan]

Every time a catch goes up, I get the feeling that there is only a 50-50 chance that it will get caught. The fielders don't look confident, drop many dollies. Particularly offenders tend to be Indian non-international players, but others too have dropped.

 

What is the reason for such a high percentage of dropped catches? What are these fielding coaches that teams have employed doing? Are they even relevant considering they are with the team only for 2 months and improving fielding requires continuous work. 

 

Any particular reason for such a high frequency of dropped catches in the IPL?

 

[vvvslaxman]

Hard to explain these things since there is no pattern. Ramandeep pulled off briliant catches. It is upto the individual. Very rarely external factors played its part. One or two slipped i think. I noticed there were several issues with calling with ball going between two fielders. It can happen anywhere.  Caught and bowled is  another area where we saw few catches going down.  Keeper dropping catches have no excuse.

[maniac]

Matches are mostly late in the evening, floodlights and the dusk time can make it difficult.

[Texan]

6 hours ago, vvvslaxman said:

Hard to explain these things since there is no pattern. Ramandeep pulled off briliant catches. It is upto the individual. Very rarely external factors played its part. One or two slipped i think. I noticed there were several issues with calling with ball going between two fielders. It can happen anywhere.  Caught and bowled is  another area where we saw few catches going down.  Keeper dropping catches have no excuse.

There is no way any Test team can be even moderately successful even with World class bowlers if the same rate of catching had applied to Test matches. Yes, one reason could be attributed to the floodlights, but even if you concede a few to that reason, still a large majority of dropped catches have involved fielders who hardly looked likely to even take the catch in the first place.

 

I wonder if the breakneck speed of T20s contributes to fielder fatique resulting in lapses of concentration while trying to take a catch. 

[vvvslaxman]

2 hours ago, Texan said:

There is no way any Test team can be even moderately successful even with World class bowlers if the same rate of catching had applied to Test matches. Yes, one reason could be attributed to the floodlights, but even if you concede a few to that reason, still a large majority of dropped catches have involved fielders who hardly looked likely to even take the catch in the first place.

 

I wonder if the breakneck speed of T20s contributes to fielder fatique resulting in lapses of concentration while trying to take a catch. 

 

Pressure could be a reason. Especially steeplers are not everybody's cup of tea.  Sometimes, even experienced players drop due to nerves. IPL can be nerve-wracking with loud noise and distractions.

[maniac]

9 hours ago, vvvslaxman said:

 

Pressure could be a reason. Especially steeplers are not everybody's cup of tea.  Sometimes, even experienced players drop due to nerves. IPL can be nerve-wracking with loud noise and distractions.

It’s not easy to catch white ball under white bright flood lights. Even when we drive- dusk-dawn time is toughest for visibility.

 

i used to think it’s poor fielding etc but then I see athleticsim improved but on the other end good fielders dropping high dollies. That could be a legit “scientific reason”

 

pressure, taking it easy, laziness etc might be factors but that is at an individual level.

[Ultimate_Game]

When you factor in Chahal, Kohli, and Shami's c&b drops, that should cover nearly 20% of the drops 

[Mariyam]

players don’t drop many catches.

[Texan]

On 4/17/2025 at 11:45 AM, Mariyam said:

players don’t drop many catches.

@Mariyamji, Ashwani Kumar ko dekha? 

[Zero_Unit]

I used to always think like this till I played cricket one day under flood lights. Bro, I have no idea how players even sees the ball when it goes up. 

[BlueBee]

On 4/16/2025 at 8:10 PM, maniac said:

Matches are mostly late in the evening, floodlights and the dusk time can make it difficult.

I would say the humidity probably also plays a factor, making hands sweaty hence slippery. 

[cricketfan28]

Script control.

[crictime]

Riyan Parag was a good fielder. This year he has dropped 3 catches . Maybe a few more in some matches which I did not see.

[Nikhil_cric]

Dont play 9 month season of domestic cricket and expect players to be at their best at the very end of it.

 

It takes a huge mental toll