During their Champions Trophy 2025 opener against Bangladesh on Thursday, February 20, India captain Rohit Sharma vented his regret after dropping a routine catch at first slip, preventing Axar Patel from scoring a hat-trick.
Prior to a comeback by Towhid Hridoy and Jaker Ali, India had limited Bangladesh to 35/5. After Jaker put up a solid 68 and Hridoy scored his first ODI century, the tables were turned, and 229 was the goal.
“I should have grabbed that simple catch. It was a little frustrating because I had high expectations for myself in the slips. However, these things do occur. More significantly, our bowlers’ performance prepared the game for us,” Rohit stated during the post-match press conference.
Axar Patel squandered the opportunity in the ninth over when he removed Mushfiqur Rahim and Tanzid Hasan from two consecutive deliveries. Axar got Jaker to give him an edge on hat-trick ball, but Rohit wasted the chance and began striking the ground in frustration, clearly crabbed. Axar, meanwhile, put his hands on his head and stepped back.
“I was about to celebrate when I realized it had not happened. During the innings break, Axar said, “These things are part of the game.”
Later, in an attempt to lighten the mood, Rohit Sharma promised to make up for it with Axar. He stated, “I’ll take him out for dinner on Friday night.”
Despite Bangladesh’s opposition, India maintained its dominance.
“They have a significant partnership, and that is possible. Jaker and Hridoy deserve praise for their batting performance. However, Rohit admitted, “I felt we were very clinical with the bat.”
Axar finished with 2 for 43 in 10 overs. Shubman Gill‘s century helped India win the game by six wickets.
India
