As Indian bowlers' desperate search for a breakthrough continued on Day 5 of the first Test against England in Leeds on Tuesday, poor show by fielders added to their misery.
The young Yashasvi Jaiswal, who hit a magnificent century in the first innings, cut a sorry figure in the field, putting down as many as four chances so far in the game - the joint most by an Indian player in a Test.
He achieved the ignominious record when he spilled a regulation chance offered by England opener Ben Duckett off Mohammed Siraj's bowling.
Siraj sent down a shortish delivery and Duckett rushed into the pull, leading to the ball going off the top-edge. Jaiswal ran in from deep backward square-leg and got two hands on the dive forward, but could not hold on to the catch. Replays showed that he was a tad slow in getting off the blocks.
Siraj was livid while skipper Shubman Gill watched in disbelief. In the dugout, head coach Gautam Gambhir could not hide his displeasure.
"Just this cruel fate that we're seeing happen here. Jaiswal, you just mentioned, not in gully, he's deep square leg, but he's dropped a catch, a difficult one. And against Mohamed Siraj. We're talking about him getting a bit hot under the collar. Should have taken this. Should have taken this catch," said Sanjay Manjrekar on air.
Duckett was on 97 then, and in the next over, rubbing salt into India's wounds, he reached the three-digit mark, his sixth Test hundred overall and first in the second innings of a Test.
In England's first innings, Jaiswal had a terrible time in slips, spilling as many as three chances, all off Jasprit Bumrah's bowling. First he dropped England's No. 3 Ollie Pope when he was on 60. Pope went on to score 106 to lead England's charge on the second day.
He also put down the dangerous Harry Brook, who was on 83 at that time, Brook made another 16 runs as he blasted a 112-ball 99 to take England closer to India's first innings total of 471.
Later, Jaiswal was moved to the gully, where he dropped a sitter, triggering hilarious reactions from social media users.
This was the first time in five years that India had put down so many chances in an innings.