Former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar recently expressed his disappointment over ICC rating the Indore pitch ‘poor’ following the third Test between India and Australia at the Holkar Stadium.
The penultimate match of the four-match series ended in just two days and a session as Australia stunned India by 9 wickets. With the pitch offering huge turn and uneven bounce right from the word go, Australia bowled out India for just 109 runs in the first innings.
In reply, they scored 197 that saw them lose their last 6 wickets for just 11 runs. India were all out for a modest 163 in the second innings before Australia chased down the required 76 runs by losing just one wicket to register a famous win. Following the game, the ICC gave a ‘poor’ rating to the pitch and also handed it 3 demerit points.
Sunil Gavaskar, however, was not happy with the ICC for their assessment of the pitch. The legendary batsman while expressing his disappointment, reminded the governing body of the Gabba pitch where the match between Australia and South Africa had finished withing two days.
“One thing I would like to know, there was this Test match in November in Brisbane Gabba, where the match finished in 2 days. How many demerit points did that pitch get and who was the match referee there? I think 3 demerit points is a little harsh, because, in this pitch, yes the ball turned, but it was not dangerous. When Australia get to a score of 77 for the loss of one wicket it actually tells you that the pitch got a lot better,” Sunil Gavaskar told India Today.
Mark Taylor hits back at Sunil Gavaskar:
Following Sunil Gavaskar’s comments, former Australia skipper Mark Taylor has hit back at the former India skipper. The former batsman explained that unlike the Indore pitch, the Gabba pitch was not made to favour just one side. He also accused India of “skulduggery” with the pitches in the series.
“I think they’ve got to keep an eye on that sort of stuff because people look at the Gabba this season. The groundsman there just got it wrong,” the former Australian captain was quoted as saying by Sydney Morning Herald.
“He left too much grass on it but, in a way, it didn’t favour either side. It would have favoured the South African seamers just as much (as Australia) because they’ve got four very good seamers.
“So I don’t think there was any skulduggery going on at the Gabba. I think with Indore, I hope I can say the same thing there, but what happened there, the pitch was so poorly prepared it actually made the game a bit more of a lottery, which didn’t favour India at all,” Taylor added.
“It probably brought Australia’s spin bowlers into the game a lot more than they (India) thought it was going to.”
Also Read: Happy For KL Rahul, Says Ex-India Skipper After Opener Was Dropped For Indore Test