The Indian cricket team suffered a tough defeat by 30 runs in just over two and a half days in the first Test of the two-match series against South Africa at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday, November
16. After the Proteas managed to secure their first Test win on Indian soil in 15 years, India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir attended the post-match press conference, where he was asked difficult questions, including one about the pitch at the venue.
Notably, the pitch at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata provided assistance to the pacers and spinners from the first session on day one and it only got tougher for the batters as the match went on due to the variable bounce becoming a constant. Apart from a little bit of movement for the pacers with the new ball and reverse swing with the old ball, the spinners were able to extract considerable turn from the straight, which are some of the hardest conditions to bat in.
Out of the 38 wickets that fell in the Test match, 16 were taken by the pacers and 22 went to spinners while excluding Indian captain Shubman Gill who retired hurt in the first innings due to neck injury and did not bat in the second innings. When asked about the nature of the pitch in the press conference, Gautam Gambhir was quoted as saying, as per First Post, “This is exactly the pitch we were looking for. I feel the curator was very helpful, and this is exactly what we wanted and exactly what we got. When you don’t play well, this is what happens.”
There were no demons in this wicket. It was not unplayable: Gautam Gambhir
The 44-year-old gave the example of a few batters across both the teams who found a way to score runs on the helpful pitch for the bowlers but it seemed that it wouldn’t have happened for them without a bit of good fortune despite showcasing a great defensive technique. He said, “There were no demons in this wicket. It was not unplayable. Temba Bavuma scored runs, and Axar and Washi also scored runs. The point is, there is no use talking about the pitch all the time. The majority of the wickets have gone to seamers. I don’t think it was a difficult wicket.”
“This was a surface where your technique was tested, your mental toughness was challenged, and if you had the temperament to grind and bat long, you could score runs. But if you tried to play attacking cricket, then it became difficult,” Gambhir said.
