BackIndia National Cricket Team captain Shubman Gill had an unfortunate moment in the field during the second ODI against New Zealand in Wellington on Saturday, November 7. The right-handed batter dropped a straightforward catch offered by Daryl Mitchell, giving the New Zealand all-rounder a costly-looking reprieve during the hosts' innings.
The incident took place in the 17th over when Anshul Kamboj found an edge off Mitchell's bat. Gill, stationed at mid-off, had enough time to settle underneath the ball but failed to hold on. Mitchell had already started walking back towards the dressing room, only to realise that he had been given another opportunity to continue his innings.
The costly miss happened on the second delivery of the 17th over, bowled by Kamboj. The Indian pacer delivered a back-of-a-length ball that climbed towards Mitchell as he attempted to hit it over the on-side. However, the ball struck high on the bat and went towards mid-off rather than travelling towards the boundary.
Shubman Gill moved into position and got both hands underneath the ball. But the Indian captain could not complete the catch, allowing it to slip through his grasp. Daryl Mitchell was convinced that he had been dismissed and had already turned around to walk off when he saw the ball fall safely to the ground.
The missed chance brought an immediate reaction from the commentary box. Former India head coach Ravi Shastri suggested that Shubman Gill might have been too relaxed while attempting the catch. "Might have been a little too relaxed there," Shastri said on air.
The incident handed Mitchell a significant reprieve, with New Zealand looking to build a competitive total after India had opted to bowl first.
Another dolly! Gill drops a sitter of Mitchell. #NZvIND #TeamIndia #Wellington #NewZealand #AnshulKamboj #ShubmanGill https://t.co/t9kANsH3rX
— lightningspeed (@lightningspeedk) November 7, 2026
SHUBHAMAN GILL dropped DARRYL MITCHELL. #NZvsIND #NZvIND https://t.co/G98MWBfT91
— Rustom Imran (@Rustomimran2) November 7, 2026
Earlier, Gill won the toss and elected to field at the Hnry Stadium in Wellington. The Indian captain pointed towards the overcast conditions and the fact that the pitch had remained under covers for a couple of days as reasons behind the decision.
India had limited opportunities to train outdoors in the lead-up to the match because rain interrupted their practice schedule. However, Gill felt the team had gained sufficient preparation from the opening ODI in Auckland, where they had secured a five-wicket victory.
"No, not really. Practice was called off yesterday because of some rain, but I think we got some good practice in the match that we played a couple of days ago," Shubman Gill said when asked about the team's preparation.
He also stressed the importance of repeating the performance from the first match rather than making major changes to the team's approach.
"Not much, to be honest. I think it's all about consistency, and if we are able to repeat the performance that we did in Auckland, I think we're going to be in a good space. We're playing the same team," Shubman Gill added.
Both teams retained their line-ups for the second ODI of the series. India made no changes after their victory in Auckland, while New Zealand also backed the same combination for the Wellington fixture.
New Zealand Playing XI: Will Young, Tim Seifert, Henry Nicholls, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (wk), Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner (c), Nathan Smith, Kyle Jamieson, Jacob Duffy, Blair Tickner.
India Playing XI: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Axar Patel, Naman Dhir, Anshul Kamboj, Auqib Nabi, Gurnoor Brar, Arshdeep Singh.