IND vs ENG 1st Test: India Hit New Low, Achieve Embarrassing Record On Day 3

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IND vs ENG 1st Test: India endured a torrid day in the field on Day 3 of the first Test against England at Headingley, Leeds, setting an embarrassing benchmark for dropped catches. Jasprit Bumrah, leading the pace attack, was visibly frustrated as the Indian fielders squandered one opportunity after another during England's first innings.

In what turned out to be a nightmare for the Indian bowlers, especially Bumrah, as many as four catches were dropped off his bowling alone - equalling the record for the most missed chances off an Indian bowler in a single Test innings.

Yashasvi Jaiswal had a particularly forgettable outing, putting down three chances, which puts him level with the record for the most catches dropped by an Indian fielder in one Test innings.

Ravindra Jadeja, typically reliable in the field, also dropped a crucial catch, adding to India's fielding misery. Ironically, Jadeja himself suffered at the hands of sloppy glovework when wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant spilled a sharp chance off his bowling. Earlier in the day, Pant had reached a personal milestone of 150 Test catches, becoming only the third Indian wicketkeeper to do so, after MS Dhoni and Syed Kirmani.

England batters made the most of the lifelines. Harry Brook was dropped twice - once on 46 and again on 82 - before he finally fell to Prasidh Krishna, caught by Shardul Thakur in the deep. Ollie Pope, who was given a reprieve earlier in the innings, went on to score a fluent century, reaching the landmark in 125 deliveries.

The repeated lapses drew criticism, with Dinesh Karthik, on commentary duty, stating that this was the most number of catches dropped by the Indian men's team in a single innings in the last five years - a damning verdict for a side known in recent years for its high fielding standards.

For India, Day 3 will not just be remembered for missed opportunities but for the alarming breakdown in basics - an issue they'll be desperate to fix before the remainder of the series.