India players at the Eden Gardens in the 1st Test vs South Africa. (Express Photo | Partha Paul)Australia’s Alyssa Healy was the latest to be baffled by India’s choice of pitch at the Eden Gardens against South Africa in Kolkata for the 1st Test. With an erratic surface on offer, the South African bowlers made merry led by Simon Harmer who snapped up 8 wickets in 2 innings, as the hosts failed to chase down a 123-run target in the 4th innings, eventually getting bundled out for 93.
“I just don’t know what they’re doing to themselves. Batting against spin is not an easy thing around the world at the moment, even if you grow up on those wickets. And I think they should start working that out for themselves. They keep giving themselves turning wickets, thinking it’s going to help them, and it hasn’t. New Zealand beat them at home doing that. So, build yourself some flat wickets and let them go,” Healy said in the Willow Talk Cricket podcast.
With India head coach Gautam Gambhir reiterating in the press conference after the match that this was the exact track India had asked for, Healy said she did not understand why the home team had done so.
“I think their spinners are actually more effective on wickets that don’t do as much and their batters enjoy that as well. If that’s what they asked for I don’t understand it because like you said it actually brings the opposition back into the attack a little bit. When you think about Jadeia, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel to an extent as well, they actually were effective attacking the stumps and when all of a sudden they’re turning the ball too much, it’s out of their wheelhouse a little bit so I don’t know, they’ll have to rethink it. They’re losing test matches at home which is a really bizarre thing for India to do. They’re going to have to look at it and go what do we need to do? And I think it might be let’s play on some better wickets,” she added.
Under Gambhir, India have lost 4 of their last 6 Tests at home, going 0-3 down to New Zealand last year and now the latest loss against South Africa with the Proteas claiming a win in the longest format in India after 15 long years. The two teams will meet again on Saturday in Guwahati with South Africa having a chance to do something they haven’t done since 2000- win a Test series in India.
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