The second test between South Africa and India in Cape Town got over in 1.5 days. The pitch at Cape Town attracted criticism. The pitch had excessive help for the seamers, with the ball jumping and darting around from the good length spot.
Indian captain, Rohit Sharma expressed his view on the pitch, suggesting that players should embrace the challenges posed by different conditions. He emphasizes that criticism of Indian pitches should be avoided, and he questions the rating of a World Cup final pitch as poor, pointing out that a batsman scored a century, which, in his opinion, contradicts the assessment. He has no problems in playing on these kind of pitches if others don’t criticise Indian wickets.
“I don’t mind playing on pitches like this as long as everyone keeps their mouth shut in India and doesn’t complain about Indian pitches. You come here to challenge yourself. And when people come to India it is challenging as well,” Sharma said after the second Test match.
“I still can’t believe that the World Cup final was rated below average. A batter got a hundred. How can that be a poor pitch?” he further added.
Actually, when test matches get over regularly in two days in India with the ball turning, it attracts a lot of undue criticism from the SENA players and Media without thinking about their own performances.
Now, as India will play against England in a 5 game Test series at home, the discussion is again around the pitch. England media and former cricketers have been the biggest crybabies regarding pitches in India.
Former India cricketer, Sunil Gavaskar broke his silence. Sunil Gavaskar supports Rohit Sharma’s stance on cricket pitches, acknowledging the challenge of playing on different surfaces. Gavaskar highlights Rohit’s plea not to question the pitch early in a match in India. Gavaskar suggests that there’s a historical bias against India in international cricket, with teams having an agenda and often attempting to denigrate India’s achievements, especially since it became a prominent force in the sport.
Sunil Gavaskar Takes A Dig At English Media And Cricketers
“The Indian skipper Rohit Sharma was spot on when he said after the quick finish in the second Test that he doesn’t mind playing on pitches like the one dished out there as it’s a challenge to play on surfaces different from home,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for Mid-Day.
“He (Rohit) also said that please don’t start questioning the pitch when the ball starts turning on Day One in India. Of course, he is asking for the impossible because as we have seen ever since India became a power in the sport and rightfully began to assert itself in the ICC boardrooms, there has been a concerted effort to denigrate it by those from the Old Powers. They arrive with an agenda and come what may, will dish out stories for getting the brownie points at home,” Gavaskar said.
“In 3 weeks time another Test series starts with a country that has the biggest whinging and moaning media in sport. Anything that doesn’t suit their team will be criticised” he concluded.
