Former South African fast bowler Dale Steyn, on X (formerly Twitter), shared a witty tweet about the briefest Test match ever played between India and South Africa at Newlands Cricket Ground. He humorously stated that any Test match concluding in less than 4-5 days doesn’t qualify as a true Test match.
Dale Steyn is not the only one sharing views on the matter; he is joined by figures like Sunil Gavaskar, Aakash Chopra, Ravi Shastri, and Vernon Philander in discussing the debacle. Despite agreeing that the 2nd Test shouldn’t have ended so quickly, opinions varied on the pitch.
Gavaskar and Chopra felt Test matches shouldn’t be played on tracks like Newlands. They criticized SENA country media for complaining about spin-friendly Indian pitches. Ravi Shastri emphasized India’s rapid second innings end with a unique metaphor. On the other hand, Vernon Philander suggested batters enhance their techniques on challenging surfaces.
Dale Steyn Made A Bold Statement
However, Dale Steyn wasn’t pleased with the brief match duration, expecting a full five days of action, especially after the first test concluded by Day 3.
Dale Steyn questioned the fear around cracks in a tweet about the Newlands pitch curator adding grass to prevent cracks. He humorously mentioned wide cracks in Sydney and Perth, suggesting one could park vehicles in them. Steyn emphasized that players or curators shouldn’t fear cracks and highlighted the need for Test matches to be longer-lasting.
“Why we so scared of cracks? Think Sydney, Perth. Cracks so wide you can park a car inside them, and yet they always get to days 4 and 5! Pointless a test being over so fast you don’t even see a hint of a crack. Pitches deteriorate over the days, let it happen. Two-day tests are not Test matches.”
Check out the Tweet:
Why we so scared of cracks?
Think Sydney, Perth. Cracks so wide you can park a car inside them, and yet they always get to days 4 and 5! Pointless a test being over so fast you don’t even see a hint of a crack.
Pitches deteriorate over the days, let it happen. Two day tests are…— Dale Steyn (@DaleSteyn62) January 4, 2024
The India vs. South Africa 2nd Test has now secured its place as the shortest Test match in history, surpassing the previous record set in 1932 between South Africa and Australia. Notably, the 23 wickets that fell on Day 1 also rank as the second-highest number of wickets in a single day, following a 1904 Test between England and Australia, where 25 wickets fell across three sessions.
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