After crushing Sri Lanka in Mumbai, Rohit Sharma and company travelled to Kolkata for the high-octane clash against South Africa. Head coach Dravid, batting coach Vikram Rathour, and bowling coach Paras Mhambrey immediately went to inspect the Eden Gardens pitch to plan their preparation for Sunday’s World Cup match between India and South Africa.
Following two low-scoring matches in Eden Gardens, The Kolkata pitch is expected to be batting heaven for the India vs South Africa game. In order to assess the condition of the field, Rahul Dravid has made it customary in every city to go immediately alongside his support staff to the stadium to assess the conditions. It is reported that he took fifteen minutes on Friday to inspect the 22-yard strip.
Speaking to PTI, Bengal curator Sujan Mukherjee said that Indian head coach Rahul Dravid is happy with the pitch in Kolkata and feels that the surface the batters would get their value for shots. He also revealed that the game will be played on the same surface as Bangladesh and the Netherlands, and believes that the Indian team can score more than 300 runs on this track.
“The head coach (Rahul Dravid) seemed satisfied with the track. We have produced good wickets at Eden. The bounce will be even and batters will get value for their shots. But bottom line is, one needs to play well. Sri Lanka got all out for 55. Was it a bad track?”
“The match would be played on the same track where Holland played Bangladesh. That was the first game and after that, some work has been done on the track. The grass kept is very minimal and Eden is always a black soil track. So it will be a hard strip where one can hit through the line. This Indian line-up, if they bat first, can score 300 plus,” Sujan Mukherjee said.
The Men in Blue, who have won seven straight games, will take on South Africa in the 2023 ODI World Cup on Sunday, November 5, at Kolkata’s famed Eden Gardens. Having won six of their seven games, the Proteas are ranked second in the standings. Their lone defeat came in a shorter match against the Netherlands and the clash is expected to be mouth-watering given the present form of both sides, as many believe that one of the two teams would walk with the title in the ongoing mega event.