Author: Shamik Chakrabarty

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens India’s bowling coach Morne Morkel came for the press conference at the end of the second day’s play of the first Test between India and South Africa here at Eden Gardens, and from Shubman Gill’s injury to the pitch, he touched upon many subjects. Excerpts… On Gill’s injury I think we first need to determine how he got neck stiffness, maybe just a bad night’s sleep. I don’t think we can put it down to the load. Shubman is a very fit guy, he looks after himself very well, so it’s just unfortunate this morning…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens Question: Has Eden Gardens ever seen a pitch like this for a Test? Answer: No, at least not in recent memory. Sample this. In the third over of South Africa’s second innings, after India took a valuable 30-run first innings lead, Jasprit Bumrah landed a delivery a on good length, which took a puff of dust and seamed in. More importantly, given that the bowler was operating with the new ball, it kept incredibly low. A bottom edge saved Ryan Rickelton. The next ball rose dangerously off a length, kissed the batsman’s ribcage and went…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens Rajasthan Royals used IPL’s Rule 59.1 to perfection to get the Samson-Jadeja (plus Sam Curran) deal over the line. The story of the 2026 IPL’s biggest swap deal yet was broken by RevSportz on November 9. On Saturday, the IPL confirmed it via a press release. The release stated: “Senior All-rounder and former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Ravindra Jadeja will represent Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the upcoming IPL season following a successful trade. Jadeja, who played for CSK for 12 seasons, is among the most experienced players in the league, having played over 250…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens Shubman Gill went a little too hard at Simon Harmer’s delivery. A slog-sweep went over backward square all right, but the India captain hurt himself in the process. He held his neck and grimaced in pain. Eventually, he retired hurt. It was a bit of an anti-climax. A Saturday morning crowd at Eden Gardens greeted Gill with loud cheers as he walked out to bat at the fall of Washington Sundar’s wicket. Resuming on overnight 37/1, the southpaw, along with KL Rahul, took India’s score to 75 without any discernible trouble. A 57-run second wicket…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens It’s now official. The Sanju Samson and Ravindra Jadeja-plus-Sam Curran swap deal has been confirmed by the IPL. On November 9, RevSportz broke the story that Samson coming to Chennai Super Kings and Jadeja and Curran going to Rajasthan Royals, in the biggest trade deal ahead of the 2026 IPL, was about to happen. It has now been rubber-stamped. CSK have acquired Samson for INR 18 crore, while Jadeja’s fee has been revised to INR 14 crore. Curran has been roped in for his existing league fee of Rs 2.4 crore. “Jadeja’s move marks an…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens Does Jasprit Bumrah still carry the hurt? The question has to be asked. On Friday, in his first Test at Eden Gardens, Bumrah gave a masterclass in fast bowling. He does it for fun. Seam, swing and bounce – he had South Africa on the mat, returning with 5/27 from 14 overs. Somehow, at the post-day press conference, the fitness question reared its head again. “You play in all three formats. Still, sometimes there are some questions raised about your fitness. How satisfied are you with today’s performance after taking five wickets on the first…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens On Day 1 of the first Test here at Eden Gardens, South Africa lost 10 wickets in 55 overs. From 114/3 at one stage, their innings folded for 159, after winning the toss and batting first. At the end of the day’s play, their batting coach Ashwell Prince spoke about the uneven bounce from the Eden Gardens pitch, while at the same time tipping his hat to Jasprit Bumrah. “My assessment of the surface and I think probably after four or five deliveries in the first over where one rolled and went for four byes…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens If Jasprit Bumrah doesn’t get you, Kuldeep Yadav or Mohammed Siraj must. South Africa have come here as the reigning world Test champions. The second ball of the first Test at Eden Gardens rolled along the surface. The very next delivery reared off a length. Welcome to India. There’s hardly any better sight in red-ball cricket than Bumrah in full flow. When he makes the ball talk, cricket becomes music with the lightness of his craft. To borrow a phrase from Manchester United match-goers on Cristiano Ronaldo, and paraphrase it, Bumrah moved the ball left,…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens The second ball of the match, Jasprit Bumrah running in from the Club House end, rolled along the surface and went for four byes. Rishabh Pant didn’t expect the grubber but he shouldn’t be blamed. The next delivery reared off a length and Aiden Markram handled the extra bounce well. The pitch for the first Test between India and South Africa here at Eden Gardens is going to be interesting as the match progresses. India pulled a rabbit out of the hat at the toss, when team sheets were exchanged. Washington Sundar at No.…

Shamik Chakrabarty at Eden Gardens From a distance, the Eden Gardens pitch doesn’t look like one that will unleash a ferret down the 22 yards. “Today (Thursday), it looked a bit different from yesterday (Wednesday),” mused Shubman Gill, the India captain. India’s bragging rights over their home dominance was sullied by Tom Latham’s New Zealand last year. Temba Bavuma’s South Africa have come here as the reigning world Test champions. Test cricket is returning to Eden after a gap of six years. In 2019, it was a pink-ball game, resplendent in Virat Kohli’s batting mastery. Much water has flown under…