Washington Sundar told to improve 'levels' after costly Virat Kohli drop: 'For too long, missed opportunities with him'

Washington Sundar told to improve on the fielding bit after costly Virat Kohli error costs Gujarat Titans against the RCB.

Published on: Apr 25, 2026, 14:12:04 IST

Written by Vishesh Roy

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Virat Kohli made the Gujarat Titans pay in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 fixture at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday. The chase master once again stepped up with the bat, scoring 81 runs off 44 balls, setting up the Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) chase of 206. In the end, the defending champions won the contest with five wickets in hand and seven balls to spare. However, the Gujarat Titans would have been in the contest had Washington Sundar not made a costly error in the opening over.

Washington Sundar told to improve on the fielding bit (AP)

The Gujarat Titans had the chance to send Kohli back to the hut for a duck in the opening over, but Sundar ended up dropping a sitter off the bowling of Mohammed Siraj. This was all the luck that the 37-year-old needed, and he ended up smashing eight fours and four sixes in his knock of 81 as RCB made light work of the 206-chase.

Former West Indies pacer Ian Bishop sympathised with the 26-year-old, saying anyone can drop catches; however, he advised the young all-rounder to work on his fielding, as these sorts of errors keep happening to him.

Also Read: Shubman Gill accepts guilt after Virat Kohli dropped on 0 as RCB star makes Gujarat Titans pay, reclaims Orange Cap

"No, I see that differently. We have all dropped catches. You don't pick and choose which ones you drop. But what I would ask Washy is that your level of fielding has got to go up. He's a young guy, athletic enough," said Bishop on ESPNcricinfo 'TimeOut'.

"For too long, I have been seeing missed opportunities with him. So I would ask him to put a little more work in that so he becomes an asset in the field in addition to all the other things," he added.

Steyn agrees

Former South Africa speedster Dale Steyn agreed with Bishop, saying one cannot drop a player like Kohli, given his knack for acing chases.

"Can't drop Kohli. The guy who's gonna be one of the best chasers in the world. That catch, actually, doesn't matter who it is; you just can't drop that. That's ten out of ten times, you should be taking that," said Steyn.

Speaking of the Kohli drop, Sundar put down a simple catch at mid-wicket. Siraj bowled a good length delivery on the pads, and Kohli just flicked the ball straight to the all-rounder. However, it was simply in and out of Sundar's hands, and the youngster painted a sorry picture once the chance went begging.

Owing to the win over the Gujarat Titans, RCB moved to the second spot, while the Shubman Gill-led side remains at the seventh spot.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Vishesh Roy
Vishesh Roy is a sports journalist with a strong focus on cricket. He began his career at Asian News International (ANI), where he covered a range of high-profile events, including the India Open, Legends Cricket League, the England–India Test series in Ahmedabad in 2021, and the inauguration of the Narendra Modi Stadium. During his tenure at ANI, he also reported extensively on domestic cricket, covering several Ranji Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy matches across the country. While cricket remains his primary beat, Vishesh has also reported on tennis, football and WWE. After a stint of over three years at ANI, Vishesh moved to NDTV, where he gained hands-on experience in digital-first journalism, with a particular emphasis on live blogs and real-time news reporting. He joined Hindustan Times in October 2024 and quickly established himself with a series of exclusive interviews and source-driven stories. Ahead of the IPL 2025 auction, Hindustan Times was the first to report that the two-day event would be held in Saudi Arabia. In the early months of his tenure, Vishesh secured interviews with leading cricketers, including Pat Cummins, Shreyas Iyer, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Rashid Latif. He has also closely tracked the rise of emerging talents such as Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Priyansh Arya by speaking to their current and childhood coaches. His background in on-field reporting has helped Hindustan Times Digital break exclusive stories on major developments, including Virat Kohli’s return to the Ranji and Vijay Hazare Trophy, IPL scheduling, and the T20 World Cup controversy involving Bangladesh and Pakistan.Read More

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