RR vs LSG | Twitter amused as Shardul fumbles, disappears, reappears and ultimately takes the catch

ByDebayan Sinha,SportsCafe Editor

Last Saturday at 11:28 PM

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Sometimes, being punished for a mistake can turn out to be a blessing in disguise. That was the case with Shardul Thakur during the match against Rajasthan Royals—after fumbling a crucial fielding effort that proved costly, he redeemed himself immediately on the very next ball with a stunning catch.

‌It was a stunning opening stand between Vaibahv Suryavanshi and Yasahsvi Jsiwal, which took Rajasthan to 85/0 in seven overs. But Rajasthan’s strong start took a hit as Aiden Markram dismissed Vaibhav Suryavanshi in the ninth over, followed by Nitish Rana's wicket in the next. With Riyan Parag and Yashasvi Jaiswal steadying the chase, Rajasthan reached 135/2 in 15 overs, needing just 46 from the final five. Though Avesh Khan struck twice in the 18th over to remove both set batters, Shimron Hetmyer kept the chase alive, bringing the equation down to nine runs in the final over. Additionally, it was Shardul Thakur’s brilliance in the field that led to Shimron Hetmyer's dismissal.

On the second ball of the final over, Avesh Khan bowled full and wide outside off. Hetmyer stepped out and went for a big swing, only to get a top edge that flew towards Shardul at deep backward point. Though he fumbled slightly, he quickly recovered and threw it back to Pant at the striker's end. Sensing the need for a fielding change, Pant immediately moved Shardul from deep backwards point to square leg.

On the very next delivery, Avesh bowled a pitched-up delivery on the pad line. Hetmyer, deep in his crease, tried to flick it to the leg side but ended up hitting it straight into the hands of Shardul Thakur, who had just been repositioned for that exact shot. The Mumbai all-rounder was stunned as he completed the catch, and the Twitterverse erupted, celebrating the sharp tactical move.

Absolute Cinema!

— Deba (@Deba192240)

Its Lord Thakur!

Lord writes his own script 🤣🤣🤣
— S (@SJ4CSK)

Mastermind!

GOOD FIELD PLACEMENT FROM RISHABH PANT!!!

Rishabh Pant placed Shardul Thakur at a very unorthodox position, Shimron Hetmyer hit the ball directly into his hand.
— Priyanshu Kumar (@priyanshusports)

Lord Thakur!

You can’t keep out lord from the action.

SHARDUL THAKUR 🔥🔥🔥
— Uttam Mahamiya (@UMahamiya)

Shardul!

The ball caught Shardul Thakur.
— Gaurav Sethi (@BoredCricket)

Yup!

Shardul Thakur couldn't hold the ball first time
— IPL x PSL 2025 (@mdshiipu)

Gone!

Avesh Khan to Shimron Hetmyer…

OUT! GONE!

Shardul Thakur takes the catch under pressure, and Hetmyer walks back!

RR still need 6 off the last 3 balls it's going down to the wire!
— Alexander. (@_TheNotGreat08)

Yeah!

Shardul Thakur was moved to that spot because he did fumble for the first ball and then took a Catch next ball 🤣
— 🎰 (@StanMSD)

Lord Thakur!

Wow. Rajasthan have made a total mess of this. Also tells you LSG would’ve won last time against CSK if Shardul Thakur hadn’t lost it in the end.
— Aadit Kapadia (@ask0704)

Superb!