Jonty Rhodes in awe of stunning catch taken by ball-boy

While an exciting contest in the 1st ODI between India and New Zealand is underway, India have found another supporter in the form of Jonty Rhodes. After losing early wickets, India did well to push the target beyond the par-score of 250 and eventually post 280 on the scorecard, riding on the back of Virat Kohli’s 31st ODI century and a handy cameo from Bhuvneshwar Kumar down the order.

Jonty Rhodes, who has been a close observer of Indian cricket because of his time with the Mumbai Indians and as a mentor in the Tamil Nadu Premier League, was one of those who were watching the match and simultaneously providing insights via his Twitter commentary.

He was quick to applaud the “pumped up” atmosphere at the Wankhede stadium. Moreover, For a terrific fielder like Jonty Rhodes, the catch that a ball-boy took beyond the boundary off a Virat Kohli shot, it was a treat to the eyes. Interestingly, the ball-boy is an U-14 cricketer under the Mumbai Cricket Association and Jonty was quick to acknowledge the talent Mumbai produces.

The impact of the catch hadn’t worn out for Jonty even an hour later.  The New Zealand fielders looked understandably drained on the field initially, because of the scorching heat and energy draining humidity. However, according to the South African, efforts like that the one Kane Williamson put in that stunning catch was a result of the inspiration the Kiwis got after seeing the ball-boy’s efforts.

Praise for Kohli

Virat Kohli was at his absolute best in his 200th ODI match and Jonty couldn’t help but shower praise on the Indian skipper as he tweeted. Virat Kohli was the lone warrior for almost all part of the first innings as he racked up 121 runs. The two featured together for the All Hearts FC in the Celebrity Classico football match last week. He tweeted multiple times across different stages of Kohli’s innings expressing how good his knock was, especially for viewers to watch.