India's captain Rohit Sharma expressed his intention to treat teammate Axar Patel to dinner after he missed a straightforward catch that denied the all-rounder a chance at achieving his first hat-trick during the Champions Trophy Group A match at the Dubai International Stadium on Thursday. In the ninth over of Bangladesh's innings, Axar Patel successfully dismissed Tanzid Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim with consecutive deliveries, placing Bangladesh in a precarious position. Anticipating a potential hat-trick, Rohit positioned two slips and a leg slip to support Axar. The left-arm spinner delivered an exceptional ball that induced an outside edge from Jaker Ali's bat, but Rohit, stationed at first slip, failed to secure the uncomplicated catch.

Had Axar succeeded, he would have been the first Indian to achieve a hat-trick in the Champions Trophy. The missed catch proved costly for India, as Jaker Ali went on to score 68 runs and established Bangladesh's highest ODI partnership (154) for any wicket alongside Towhid Hridoy. If Rohit had successfully caught the ball during the powerplay, Bangladesh would have found themselves at 35/6; instead, they managed to set a competitive total of 228 on a pitch that became increasingly challenging as the match progressed.

Fortunately for Rohit and the Indian team, Shubman Gill scored his eighth ODI century, enabling India to chase down the target with six wickets remaining, thus securing a victorious start in the Champions Trophy.

‘I may take him for dinner tomorrow’: Rohit to Axar Patel

After the match, when questioned about his dropped catch, Rohit acknowledged that he should have made the catch, given the high standards he maintains on the field. "I may take him (Axar) for dinner tomorrow. That was an easy catch, and I should have taken it based on the standards I set for myself. However, I understand that such things can happen. Credit goes to Hridoy and Jaker for forming a solid partnership," Rohit remarked with a smile.

Rohit also had an amusing reaction when Jaker Ali reciprocated by dropping KL Rahul's catch during India's innings. The Indian captain was seen laughing and saying, "I dropped you."

Shami, Gill shine in India's win

Pace bowler Mohammed Shami played a pivotal role in securing the win, achieving figures of 5-53 and helping to reduce Bangladesh to a precarious 35-5 during his initial spell. Despite this early setback, Bangladesh managed to recover and posted a total of 228 all out after opting to bat first.

In response, India commenced their innings with vigor, as Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill consistently found the boundary. Rohit became the tenth batsman overall, and the fourth Indian, to surpass the milestone of 11,000 runs in One Day Internationals.

The Indian captain scored 41 runs before being dismissed by fast bowler Taskin Ahmed, leading to Virat Kohli entering the field to enthusiastic applause from the sparse crowd. Kohli took ten deliveries to score his first run and contributed 22 runs before mis-timing a late cut to backward point off leg-spinner Rishad Hossain.

India faced further challenges as Rishad and Mustafizur Rahman dismissed Axar Patel and Shreyas Iyer, leaving the team in a precarious position at 144-4. However, vice-captain Gill, who was named player of the series with 259 runs in India's recent 3-0 ODI victory over England, maintained his composure. He and KL Rahul formed an unbroken partnership of 87 runs, guiding the team to victory. Rahul ended the match not out on 41, having been dropped early in his innings by Jaker at deep mid-wicket, while Gill celebrated his eighth ODI century as India secured the win.

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