'It Was Mitch's Catch': Hazlewood Blames Alex Carey For Virat Kohli's Dropped Catch
Mitchell Marsh granted Virat Kohli a reprieve when he was on 12 (Twitter)
In the aftermath of Australia's six-wicket loss to India in their opening game of World Cup 2023 in Chennai on Sunday, Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood has come to the defense of teammate Mitchell Marsh, who missed a crucial catch off Virat Kohli during the game.
Hazlewood points to Carey's proximity as cause for dropped Kohli catch
Kohli, who was on 12 at the time, was given a reprieve when Marsh, attempting to take the catch from the mid-wicket region, was distracted as wicketkeeper Alex Carey also ran in. The moment of confusion led to the dropped catch.
In the post-match press conference, Hazlewood expressed his view that the missed chance did not significantly influence the game's outcome, especially considering it happened quite early in the match.
“No, I don’t think so (it played a role), it was quite early obviously when that catch was dropped, said Hazlewood.
The lanky speedster conveyed the sentiment that he hadn't expected Carey to get close enough to interfere and felt it was primarily Marsh's catch to take. He reckoned that with Carey's unexpected approach, Marsh might have been momentarily unsettled.
“I didn’t think Carey could get there. I think it was Mitch’s catch and probably just Carey got quite close in the end so it might have just put Mitch off,” added the 32-year-old.
Watch: Mitchell Marsh's dropped catch of Virat Kohli
Despite the early hiccup, India, while chasing a target of 199, found themselves languishing at 20 for three. However, the scenario could have been more challenging for the hosts, at 20 for four, had the catch been taken. Subsequently, Kohli, capitalizing on the chance, stitched a match-defining 165-run partnership with KL Rahul, leading India to a comfortable six-wicket victory.
Wrapping up his remarks, Hazlewood highlighted the unpredictability and challenges of the sport, indicating that despite rigorous training, such oversights can occur, and the team is prepared to push past and focus on upcoming games.
“Yeah, he dropped a catch, it’s one of those things that happens and everyone’s training hard and working hard off the field to hang on to them. So, yeah, we’ll continue on,” concluded Hazlewood.
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