Iyer pulled off a spectacular catch, but moments later, he walked off the pitch holding his hips
While India’s fielding might have been quite ordinary in the first two ODIs, Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer have elevated the fielding standards in the third ODI against Australia in Sydney, on October 25 (Saturday).
Kohli set the tone earlier in the day when he showed great reflexes to dismiss the on-song Matthew Short, reacting strongly. 11 overs after that, Iyer showed why he is considered one of the best fielders in the country, with a contender for ‘Catch Of 2025’, putting his body on the line.
Talking about the dismissal, Alex Carey played the ball away from his body, as Harshit Rana’s pace had beaten him at all ends. For most parts of the next few seconds, the ball was heading into the vacant point region, as the left-handed batter would have prayed.
However, as it turned out, the Indian vice-captain ran at full throttle, all the way across to the deep fielder before putting on a full-length dive to send back Carey. Unfortunately, for Iyer, he landed hard on his ribs and immediately was wincing in a lot of pain, as Kuldeep Yadav signalled towards the dressing room for medical help.
Moments later, Iyer walked off the field, holding his hips with the other hand, and covered his face, which seemed to be in a lot of pain. There’s still no clarity on whether Iyer would be able to carry on in India’s run chase. Iyer’s catch helped India’s hold on the clash, as Australia were reduced to 183/4, which turned to 198/6 a few overs later.
