Dropped catches have been a topic of discussion for both teams. Australia paid the price after Steve Smith missed three opportunities, including a catch from Ravindra Jadeja at the end of Day 2. India also faced this issue with Virat Kohli, who dropped two catches in Australia’s first innings and another on Day 3, causing disbelief for both Captain Rohit Sharma and bowler R Ashwin. The blunder also received commentary from former India cricketers Ravi Shastri and Sunil Gavaskar.
The incident occurred during the sixth over of the innings, when Ashwin bowled a flighted delivery to David Warner. The Australian attempted to defend, but the ball took the outside edge and was headed towards Kohli at slip. Despite being a routine catch, Kohli was slow to react and the ball bounced off his wrist. He attempted to grasp it, but lost his balance and the ball hit the ground.
Kohli made contact with the ball, but in his haste to complete the catch, it slipped through his grasp. His missed opportunity resulted in frustration from Indian Captain Rohit Sharma and spinner Ashwin, with a video of their reaction quickly spreading on social media platforms.
Gavaskar commented on air, saying that Kohli was simply too eager to secure the catch,” said Gavaskar. Shastri then weighed in on the disappointment expressed by Rohit and Ashwin, remarking, “both of them couldn’t believe what had just happened.
In Australia’s first innings on the opening day of the Nagpur Test, Kohli had already made two costly drops, granting extra chances to Steve Smith and Peter Handscomb. This led to criticism from former Australian cricketer Mark Waugh.