Punjab Kings chased down 265 against Delhi Capitals in Delhi, chasing the most successful run in IPL history. But for Karun Nair, it was a night of missed opportunities and visible heartbreak. Nair had a tough outing in the field, dropping Shreyas Iyer twice in the space of four balls, mistakes that proved decisive in the context of the game. The first chance came on the last ball of the 15th over, when Vipraj Nigam mistimed a shot towards long off by Iyer. Nair settled down comfortably but dropped what looked like a straight catch. The reaction said it all, Nigam fell to the ground in disbelief, knowing that an important opportunity had gone begging.Just four balls later, Iyer got another lifeline. On the second ball of the 16th over, Kuldeep Yadav cheated him with a wrong one. The ball took a top edge and ballooned towards long-on, but Nair, once again perfectly positioned, failed to hold it.After the second drop, Nair looked visibly shaken, almost on the verge of tears, as Delhi let the game slip away. Iyer made the most of his recovery, scoring a match-winning knock of 71 off 36 balls to send the Punjab Kings home with seven balls to spare, sealing a historic chase.Despite the costly mistakes, former India spinner Ravichandran came out in strong support of Ashwin Nair, offering a measured view of his struggles.Speaking on his YouTube channel Ash Ki Baat, Ashwin said:“Let me tell you about Karun Nair’s situation. When a player finds out they are not in the playing XI, they usually find out at least a day in advance. Players who are dropped or rested often hit the gym to stay fit or do extra training on match days, knowing the next day could be a travel day with overnight flights and limited practice time. So, perhaps Karuna Nair was mentally “switched off” though that’s probably the wrong word, but he might have been fatigued from training. I’m not making excuses, but as an alternative to stepping suddenly into the intensity of the game, these things can happen,” Ashwin said. ”He dropped a catch, and his confidence went down after that. Karvin is actually a brilliant fielder. I have seen him very reliable in first class and red ball cricket especially in the closer positions. I have rarely seen him drop such catches, but today was one of those days,” added Ashwin.
