Race to the semi-finals: Fielding as a deciding factor
Batting and bowling are the core skills, which determine the fate of any cricket match. But with the race to the semi-finals getting hotter, fielding may play a bigger role in deciding winners. Castrol Index tracks fielding parameters like catches taken or dropped, runs saved in the field, run-outs effected or missed. Now let’s take a deeper view.
According to the points table, it is interesting to note that the two top teams in the table have not been the better fielding sides in this tournament (reflected in their Fielding Points accrued), which indicates that they are depending more on their Batting and Bowling expertise (reflected in their Batting Momentum or BM and Bowling Efficiencies or BE) to win matches. But when it comes to crunch situations, the bowling side will rely on tight fielding and better bowling (Extreme Performance Bowling or EP Bowl) to pull off improbable wins.
| Team | MP | W | L | BM | BE | FP | EP Bat | EP Bowl | P | CI |
| Delhi | 11 | 8 | 3 | 182 | 196 | 36 | 54 | 18 | 16 | 128 |
| Chennai | 12 | 7 | 4 | 217 | 182 | 41 | 65 | -1 | 15 | 134 |
| Deccan | 12 | 7 | 5 | 177 | 179 | 160 | 62 | 0 | 14 | 120 |
| Rajasthan | 12 | 6 | 5 | 157 | 193 | 104 | 46 | 6 | 13 | 117 |
| Bangalore | 12 | 6 | 6 | 172 | 139 | 23 | 48 | -14 | 12 | 101 |
| Punjab | 12 | 6 | 6 | 172 | 124 | 41 | 71 | 8 | 12 | 103 |
| Mumbai | 13 | 5 | 7 | 181 | 174 | 209 | 61 | 9 | 11 | 118 |
| Kolkata | 12 | 1 | 10 | 160 | 103 | -64 | 71 | -32 | 3 | 83 |
The CI matrices for Deccan Charger look similar to Mumbai Indians. The differences are that DC have played a match less and are at 3 points higher than MI. But MI, currently the best fielding side according to Castrol Index, is languishing at the bottom of the points tally. This is mainly because their batting has been found wanting during crucial stages (reflecting their comparatively low Extreme Performance Batting or EP Bat) on many occasions resulting in more losses than gains.
Similarities can also be seen between Bangalore Royal Challengers and Kings XI Punjab. How the two teams bowls and fields on the match days will determine who goes further.
For Rajasthan Royals, first, the BM and BE numbers are wide apart and secondly, the core indices are not high enough to challenge the other big teams in the tournament. So, RR had to pick up their fielding to boost their chances. No wonder then that RR ran out three MI batsmen in a space of 6 balls on their way to an amazing victory in the last match.
Kolkata KnightRiders finds themselves at the bottom in fielding too being in the negative along with a low BE. That tells us why they have lost mostly, inspite of having a healthier BM.
