Victories in hand, catches on the ground

There is an old saying among sailors: a voyage is judged twice. First by whether the ship reaches the port. Then by the condition of the vessel when it gets there. The Indian cricket team is setting out on two journeys simultaneously. They are winning the games they are expected to win – comfortably, but not necessarily with all their parts functioning at their best. Out-of-form middle order, unsettled XI, pace attack lacking sting, and fielders putting down sitters.

On Thursday, Amol Muzumdar sat flummoxed when Nandni Sharma put down a chance at short third. It was the fourth dropped catch in a space of 12 deliveries. There was no pattern to those four drops, and no specific fielder to keep under the spotlight.

It began in the third over when Juairiya Ferdous top-edged a sweep and popped the ball long enough for Yastika Bhatia to run in from short fine. By the time she could figure out and sprint towards it, she only managed to get her fingers to the ball.

Ferdous kept providing opportunities. In the next over, she pulled one straight to Radha Yadav at deep mid wicket. Spilled. In the over after that, she top-edged a slog-sweep to Nandni at short third. Spilled. That opportunity itself had come only a ball after Nandni had put down Sobhana Mostary at cover.

The ball kept following Nandni, but she made up for her mess-ups. In her second over, when Ferdous hit one right back at her, she claimed it. Jemimah Rodrigues, instead of celebrating, went to put an arm around the bowler and cheer her up – much like she had done in the previous game when Radha had put down two catches.

Jemimah is one of only six players in the squad to have taken every catch that has come their way in this competition, and one of only three – apart from Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana – to have taken multiple catches without dropping any.

India had come into the contest, having dropped seven catches already in the past three games. They dropped three catches against Pakistan, and now four against Bangladesh.

There is no specific pattern to these dropped catches – some misjudged, some dives and some straightforward chances. The group has united in its contribution. While most catches have been dropped by Radha Yadav and Nandni Sharma, the list also includes Richa Ghosh, Arundhati Reddy, Sree Charani and Yastika.

Defending the four dropped catches against Bangladesh, Radha Yadav said: "It's not really an excuse but it was a bit difficult because of the sun; it was very difficult for those fielding on this side. So it happens, sometimes conditions also matter and how you are feeling that day."

Since 2025, India have dropped 46 catches in 25 T20Is – the most by a team. Their catching efficiency of 69.3% ranks second-lowest among the 12 participating teams in the ongoing competition. It wasn't any different in their 50-over World Cup winning campaign either, where they dropped the most catches (40) and misfielded 87 times.

While the fielding lapses didn't cost India against Bangladesh, like it didn't against Pakistan, it is no secret that they have no inch to offer to the Australians if they have to keep their semifinal hopes alive.

"Fielding is something on which we have been working very hard, but unfortunately today again, we were not very great with the catches and the next game is very important. Hopefully, that is the day to show our best cricket," Harmanpreet Kaur said.

"They are our best fielders, but sometimes situations are like that. You can't really control those dropped catches. We've talked about it – let's keep working hard, keep spending a lot of time on the field, keep catching those balls so that when we go into the field, we are in a good position. But unfortunately today again, we fumbled so many balls."

Willingly or unwillingly, that is India's only choice for now: keep sailing and trust that the repairs can be made en route. They are still arriving at port with victories in hand, but against Australia in the must-win game, they may finally discover whether a vessel carrying so many loose planks can withstand a storm.