'Rahul Was Generous Enough to Give it to Him': Sai Sudharsan Wins 'Impact Fielder' Medal on Debut Series - WATCH

Young batter Sai Sudharsan had a memorable outing in South Africa. Making his ODI debut in the Rainbow Nation, the Tamil Nadu batter kicked off his international career with back-to-back half-centuries, one of which was for a winning cause. He may not have made it 3 in 3 but did make a mark in the final ODI on Thursday in Paarl.

Sudharshan showcased his agility on the field, grabbing a brilliant acrobatic catch to dismiss Heinrich Klaasen off Avesh Khan’s bowling. The incident took place in the 33^rd over of South Africa’s chase when the South African wicketkeeper-batter looked to drive a length ball from Avesh but chipped it in the air towards mid-off. Sudharsan dived full length and pulled off a stunning catch.

The youngster’s brilliant effort on the field earned him the Impact Fielder of the Series medal in the dressing room. Sudharsan edged past the likes of Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson and captain for the series, KL Rahul.

The Indians took as many as 12 catches throughout the series but the efforts showcased by Sudharsan stood out. Handing out the medal in the dressing room, fielding coach Ajay Ratra revealed that choosing the winner wasn’t easy as the toss-up was between Sudharsan and Rahul, who took 6 catches in the series. But the skipper made the decision-making easy, voluntarily giving away the medal to the youngster from Tamil Nadu.

“We took 12 catches altogether in the series. KL has taken 6, Sanju has taken 2 and Sai took a brilliant one today,” said fielding coach and former India wicketkeeper Ajay Ratra.

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“It was a tough call to decide the winner as KL has taken 6 catches and I’m generally intended towards keepers. But Rahul was generous enough, saying that it was a regulation catch so we must give it to Sai,” he added.

India will now shift focus on the 2-match Test series, starting December 26 in Cape Town. The likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah have arrived in South Africa and began training for the forthcoming series.