Image: Hardik Pandya was furious after Harshit Rana dropped Rizwan's catch / © Cricwaves
During the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 clash between India and Pakistan, Hardik Pandya was left furious after a dropped catch off his bowling nearly cost India Mohammad Rizwan’s wicket. Rizwan, who scored 46 runs off nearly 80 balls, was given a lifeline in the 33rd over when Harshit Rana dropped a catch off Pandya’s delivery. However, Axar Patel dismissed Rizwan in the very next over with a well-flighted delivery that the batter misjudged while trying to step down the track.
Axar revealed that there was a clear plan in place, and Pandya’s visible frustration fueled India’s determination to break the partnership. Rizwan had walked in during the final powerplay over and, along with Saud Shakeel, steadied Pakistan’s innings after a slow start. The pair helped Pakistan reach 150 runs before India found the much-needed breakthrough. He said:
Obviously, a plan was in place. Just a ball before, a catch was dropped off Hardik’s bowling. And when I saw him, Hardik was really angry. When I came onto bowl, I didn’t think that he would charge at me the very first ball, so I bowled it real slow. He must have thought that on that pitch I will hit the length instead of flighting it up, but I bowled it slow because they were looking to rotate the strike. So, I think I am very lucky that I was involved in both breakthroughs.
Axar also spoke about Kuldeep Yadav’s return from injury, noting that the wrist-spinner struggled to find his rhythm until the 40th over. Kuldeep had been sidelined for nearly 3-4 months and was working hard in practice. However, after some encouragement from teammates, he regained his touch, bowled slower through the air, used his variations effectively, and finished strongly in the final overs.