New Delhi: The Eden Gardens pitch has been in headlines recently after 15 wickets fell on Day 2 of the first India vs South Africa Test in Kolkata on Saturday.
For the South African batters, the fear of tackling Ravindra Jadeja on a rapidly deteriorating surface became a harsh reality, as India edged closer to victory by the end of the day. At stumps, Jadeja’s impressive spell of 4 for 27 in 13 overs left South Africa struggling at 93 for 7, holding a slim lead of just 63 runs.
Captain Temba Bavuma (29* off 78 balls) was fighting a solitary battle, but even he will have a tough task on Day 3, which looks set to be the final day of the match. The pitch has now sparked mixed reactions, with former Australia captain Aaron Finch putting a thought-provoking question to Ravichandran Ashwin regarding the surface.
Ashwin’s opens up on Eden Gardens’s Pitch
“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,” he wrote on X.
To which Ashwin wrote, “HeyFinchy, 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 a recipe for disaster.”
After Ashwin raised concerns about the batters technique, Finch responded, “I know it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, every ball is an event, though, and watching players trying to work out a way to survive is fun to watch.”
Harbhajan Singh also slammed the pitch
India great Harbhajan Singh also slammed the pitch, “Test cricket India vs South Africa the game almost over on 2nd day isn’t finished yet. What a mockery of Test cricket #RIPTESTCRICKET,” he wrote on X.
What started as a slightly dry surface on Friday had turned into something more like a fourth-day subcontinental pitch by the second hour of Saturday’s morning session.
Cracks opened up further, dust rose even on good-length deliveries, and the bounce turned increasingly unpredictable – conditions that former India coach Ravi Shastri described as “ordinary” and ex-England captain Michael Vaughan labelled “awful.”
It remains uncertain whether Eden Gardens curator Sujan Mukherjee prepared this substandard Test pitch on his own or if he was influenced by someone in the senior support staff.