The Eden Gardens pitch in the ongoing opening Test between India and South Africa is turning out to be a difficult one to bat on. Initially, it looked like a normal subcontinent track, good for batting for the first two days, but the top surface began to come off in the second half of Day 1 itself.
On Day 2, it was almost unplayable, as fast bowlers contributed to the fall of 11 of the 26 wickets.
Meanwhile, Dinesh Karthik also stated on air that the pitch hadn’t been watered the day before the Test, which is unusual. On social media, the pitch has also been slammed by some fans, and even Michael Vaughan took to X to criticise the track.
Aussie legend Aaron Finch had a different take on the pitch in Kolkata. Taking to X, he wrote, “What are your thoughts on the type of wicket we are seeing in kolkata? I love seeing fielders crowding the bat and the ball spinning big, makes for great viewing. Interested to hear how others see it.”
Responding to Finch, R Ashwin pointed out that Temba Bavuma ‘clearly showed that the pitch was manageable with his sound defensive technique’.
“Hey Finchy, Bavuma clearly showed that this pitch was manageable with his sound defensive technique, defending on top of the bounce and not picking length as a batter is recipe for disaster”, he wrote.
Finch pointed out to Ashwin that ‘every ball is an event’ in the match and it’s ‘fun’ watching players trying to survive.
“I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, every ball is an event though and watching players try and work out a way to survive is fun to watch”, he wrote.
Bavuma remained unbeaten at 29* off 78 balls in the second innings, as other South African batters failed. After Bavuma, the second-highest score for the visitors was Marco Jansen’s 13. South Africa somehow managed to reach 93/7 in 35 overs at Stumps and maintain a lead of 63 runs.