Short leg a specialist position: Moody

Australia's long-held tradition of putting rookie batsmen at short leg has been challenged after more dropped catches hurt the home side on the penultimate morning of the fourth Commonwealth Bank Test.

Coach Darren Lehmann labelled his side's fielding "shoddy" following the third Test in Melbourne after several opportunities were missed during the drawn match.

Lehmann was again left to rue missed chances yesterday, when the Aussies botched a clear run-out opportunity and captain Steve Smith spilled two catches, the first of which he felt was due in part to interference from Spidercam.

The Aussies missed two more catches in the morning session on Friday; a well-timed cut shot from Ravichandran Ashwin clipped Nathan Lyon's hand at gully on the way to the boundary, while Joe Burns misjudged a bat-pad chance at short leg.

The Lyon incident could be fairly labelled a half-chance, but the opportunity Burns put down was described as "a lot harder to drop than to catch" by Shane Warne on Channel Nine's coverage.

Fielding several metres away from the bat with Lyon bowling, Burns instinctively moved forward when an inside edge bounced of Bhuvneshwar Kumar's pad and ballooned on the on-side.

But having moved towards the batsman, Burns was caught short as the ball lobbed high over his head and he was unable to grasp the chance, despite lunging backwards and getting two hands to the ball.

Burns, who has limited experience fielding at short leg, is the latest in a long line of rookie batsmen to be thrown into the position on Test debut.

Former Test allrounder Tom Moody said the dropped chance challenged the wisdom of that tradition, arguing a team's short leg fielder should be someone with experience under the lid.

"Joe Burns, I'm happy that he's playing and happy that he's getting a game, but it's a specialist position," Moody said on commentary for Fairfax Radio.

"You can't have Nathan Lyon grafting away and having missed opportunities like that.

"It's a key position. It'd be like me saying to Glenn McGrath, 'we're just going to put anyone in at second slip'.

"Chris Rogers is often in there, but he's got a lower back problem.

"You should put one of your best fielders in there. Dave Warner is their best fielder, so get him in there.

"I've seen Shaun Marsh field there for WA so he could also play a role.

"Burns, he's in his second Test and he just hasn't looked like a short leg yet."

According to AAP, Burns’s drop was Australia's 16th missed chance in this series, equating to an extra 630 runs for the Indian batsmen.

The advantage of having a specialist fielder under the helmet was highlighted during the second Test in Brisbane when substitute Marnus Labuschagne, who fields at short leg in domestic cricket, took a stunning one-handed catch to dismiss Varun Aaron.

But short-leg specialists are rare; the position is fraught with danger due to the close proximity to the batsman, meaning there is a shortage of volunteers when the position is vacant.

While David Boon excelled there throughout his career, it has become the domain of the Test rookie, almost a rite of passage for a new player as the more experienced heads opt to field elsewhere.

Quick Single: David Boon's short-leg masterclass

Rogers has intermittently held the position since he returned to the Test side for the 2013 Ashes series, but happily passed it on when new batsmen like George Bailey, Alex Doolan and Burns were brought into the side.

The opener got a first-hand experience of how dangerous the position can be during the second Test in Brisbane; a well-struck sweep shot from Rohit Sharma hit Rogers on the helmet, an experience he later said took a toll, especially in the wake of the passing of Phillip Hughes.

"You get hit in the head and with everything that has happened recently, it's probably two inches from where Phil got hit," Rogers said before the third Test in Melbourne.

"A lot of things go through your mind.

"At 37, fielding at short leg you're thinking, 'What the hell am I doing here?'

"I'll be pushing for the young fellow (Burns) to get in there.

"As you saw from my technique, I'm probably not the bravest in there.

"But it's one of those necessary rules; you have to get in there, but preferably I don't want to be in there if I don't have to."

Moody said the best short-leg fielders, like the Boon and Gus Logie, enjoyed the challenge of fielding so close to the batsmen.

"You've got to relish the opportunity and be ready and eager to take anything that comes your way," Moody said.

"Whether that's a full-blooded pull shot that hits you in the thigh, or a catch."