Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar has raised his voice in the ongoing pitch debate by calling out unfair criticism of subcontinental wickets compared with those in SENA nations (South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia).
His remarks came after two Tests — one in Perth and another in Kolkata — ended early, but only the Eden Gardens pitch in Kolkata faced heavy backlash.
Gavaskar pointed out the hypocritical nature of some former cricketers and experts after the first Ashes Test in Perth finished inside the first two days.
“The Perth Test match has ended in less than two days, with 32 wickets having fallen, including 19 on the first day, but as yet there’s not a word of criticism about the pitch there,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for Mid-Day. “Last year too, 17 wickets fell on Day One at Perth between India and Australia, and I can’t recall a critical word about the pitch, which had more grass on it than usual.”
Gavaskar further explained his point, saying: “The same was the case in Sydney, where 15 wickets fell on Day One. The argument, as enumerated by the curator in Perth last year, was: ‘This is Perth, Australia, and you will get bounce.’ Fine — but then, when the pitch affords turn, why can’t it be accepted that this is India and there will be turn? If you complain about the bounce, then the counter-argument is that you can’t play fast bowling. Why is there never a counter-argument that you can’t play spin bowling when the pitch affords turn in India?”
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