New Delhi : The controversy surrounding the Eden Gardens pitch following the first Test between India and South Africa continues to dominate cricket discourse. While many former players and pundits have criticized the pitch—which featured uneven bounce and sharp turn, proving a graveyard for batters—Indian coach Gautam Gambhir has openly defended it, stating the surface was prepared exactly as requested. This stance has also drawn criticism, but now, the legendary batsman Sunil Gavaskar has come out in strong support of Gambhir, asserting that India’s defeat was due to poor batting, not the pitch conditions.
Speaking to India Today, Sunil Gavaskar stated, “I completely agree with Gautam Gambhir. A target of 124 could definitely have been chased on this pitch. There is no question about that.”
Gavaskar went on to question the focus on the pitch, highlighting the skill of the bowlers: “A lot of people are talking about what the pitch was like, how it was behaving, but did you see what [Simon] Harmer was doing in some overs? How many of his deliveries were turning? He was mixing it up brilliantly. He was bowling straight deliveries and sometimes getting the ball to turn.”
The Real Problem: Batting Approach
Echoing Gambhir’s sentiments, Gavaskar dismissed the idea that the pitch was the main factor in India’s loss. He argued that the real issue was the approach of the Indian batsmen, and the pitch was behaving as normally expected on Day 3 of a Test match.
“I completely agree with Gautam Gambhir that there was nothing wrong with the pitch,” Gavaskar insisted. “It is normal for some deliveries to turn on Day 3. How many balls did [Keshav] Maharaj turn? How many balls did [Ravindra] Jadeja or [Axar] Patel turn? People are calling it a turning pitch. There was nothing amiss with it at all. We got into this situation because of poor technique and poor temperament.”
South Africa Takes Commanding Lead
South Africa secured a victory in the Kolkata Test, taking an unassailable 1-0 lead in the two-match series. The visitors now need only a win or a draw in the second Test in Guwahati to clinch the series.
The Kolkata Test concluded in just two-and-a-half days, marking the first time in India that no team managed to cross the 200-run mark across all four innings. The Indian team, chasing a modest target of 124 runs in their second innings, was bundled out for just 93, losing the match by 30 runs.
