A Controversial Cape Town Test Sparks Debate on Pitches and Criticism, Sunil Gavaskar Responds
The second and final Test between South Africa and India in Cape Town became a spectacle for unexpected reasons. South Africa’s dismal first-inning score of 55 and India’s dramatic collapse, losing their last six wickets without adding a run, made for a bizarre match.
Notably, the entire Test concluded within just five sessions, setting a record for the shortest in history.
However, the narrative shifted from the on-field drama to the pitch itself. Newlands faced sharp criticism for its uneven behavior, prompting open concerns from both captain Rohit Sharma and South African batting coach Ashwell Prince.
Fueling the fire, Rohit ignited a social media storm by highlighting perceived double standards regarding pitch criticism. He questioned why seaming pitches in SENA countries (South Africa, England, New Zealand, and Australia) are accepted while turning wickets in the subcontinent attract harsh criticism.
Adding his voice to the debate, former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar took aim at the “excuses” made for pitches like Cape Town’s. In his column, he pointed towards India’s 2023 series against Australia, where accusations of “chicanery” arose from Australian media after suffering early losses on turning pitches.
“When our curators make a dry pitch then it’s ‘chicanery’, as a former Australian skipper said last year after the Aussies had been walloped in the first two Test matches. So our groundsmen do it deliberately, but their groundsmen just get it wrong,” Gavaskar said.
Gavaskar likened this to the historical bias against Indian umpires, often labeled “Delhi Butchers” compared to the “human error” attributed to SENA umpires.
“It’s like before the third country umpires came in, where decisions by their umpires were excused as ‘human error’ while our umpires were cheats and ‘Delhi Butchers’ and all such derogatory headlines,” Gavaskar lamented.
Gavaskar didn’t hold back on England either, lambasting their media for what he perceives as excessive negativity during overseas tours. He predicted “whingeing and moaning” in their upcoming Test series against India, suggesting any hiccups would be met with “thick and fast” criticism.
The India-England series kicks off on January 25th in Hyderabad, promising not just on-field action but a continuation of this off-field discourse surrounding pitches and criticism.
