"Is the captaincy affecting his fielding?" - Indian legend takes a sly dig at Riyan Parag for dropping sitter in RCB vs RR IPL 2025 match

Former India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar aimed a subtle jab at Rajasthan Royals (RR) stand-in captain Riyan Parag following a costly drop in the early stages of the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) match against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). The captain dropped Phil Salt when he was batting on 1 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Thursday, April 24.

After opting to bowl first, RR were desperate for an early breakthrough against the dominant opening pair of Virat Kohli and Phil Salt. The visitors were handed a golden opportunity in the second over after the English opener mishit a Fazalhaq Farooqi delivery in the direction of mid-off. The right-handed batter tried to pick up a low full toss, but could not get the desired elevation to clear the infield.

Parag had to bend a bit while coming in, but the ball was at a decent height. Considering the all-rounder's solid reputation as a fielder, the majority expected him to pouch it. However, the ball spilled from his hand, resulting in a major missed opportunity.

Sunil Gavaskar mentioned during commentary that perhaps the additional leadership responsibility is seeping into his fielding abilities.

"Riyan Parag is not having the best of seasons. Is the captaincy affecting his fielding? We've seen captaincy affect batting and blowing but in his case, it is also fielding," Gavaskar said during commentary (via Hindustan Times).

The drop proved to be quite costly for RR. Instead of an early breakthrough that would have reduced RCB to 12-1, RCB made the most of the second life to get through the powerplay without any casualties. Salt ended up scoring 26 runs off 23 deliveries.

RR are not having a great time in the field as Tushar Deshpande spilled a chance in the deep to give Devdutt Padikkal a major reprieve in the 13th over of the innings.

Riyan Parag had also dropped a sitter against RCB during the reverse fixture in IPL 2025

The RR all-rounder had dropped a simple opportunity to hand Virat Kohli a reprieve during RCB's recent win against them at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on April 13.

On that occasion, Parag was a firm favorite to pouch the ball while running in from long on. However, he was confused by Tushar Deshpande running in for the catch as well, leading to disaster. Kohli was batting at 7 when he was dropped, and he went on to score an unbeaten 62 to guide RCB to a nine-wicket win.