India v Australia: When surface tension got a bit too much...

With the Pune pitch being rated as poor by the ICC, TOI looks at other instances when other pitches in India were of substandard quality
INDIA VS SRI LANKA, DEC 25, 1997, INDORE
The second match of the India vs Sri Lanka series saw a bone-dry and chocolate brown surface greet both teams. India instructed the curator Narendra Menon to roll out another pitch. Sri Lanka skipper Arjuna Ranatunga had none of it and complained to match referee Justice Ebrahim that the pitch was being changed without informing him.Ebrahim ordered India to play on the original strip.Javagal Srinath's first ball exploded through the surface. The same over saw wicket-keeper Nayan Mongia collect a delivery over his head and one near the ankle.Srinath's second over saw more of the same and even injured No.3 batsman Roshan Mahanama. The umpires said enough is enough and the match was called off.Both teams played out an exhibition match which didn't see any pacers bowl.Sri Lanka won the 25-oversa-side match by two runs.
INDIA VS AUSTRALIA, 2004, MUMBAI
With the series lost, India were looking to salvage pride, but even they would not have bargained for a sand-paper type of pitch which saw 40 wickets fall in just over two days. India were bowled out for 104 and the Aussies responded with 201. Day Three saw both teams lose all their wickets.India got to 205 with 50s from Tendulkar (55) and VVS Laxman (69). A bizzare spell of play though saw India collapse from 182 for 4 with Michael Clarke taking 6-9 in 6.2 overs. Australia, chasing 107 for victory were bowled out for 93. Murali Kartik was the man of the match for his 3-32 despite Harbhajan Singh's five-for. The Aussies left generous traces of saliva on the pitch before leaving for home.
INDIA VS SOUTH AFRICA 2008, KANPUR
After being blown away by the South African seamers in the second Test in Ahmedabad on a sporting wicket, MS Dhoni replaced an injured Anil Kumble as captain. He got a tailor-made wicket for his captaincy debut. South got 265, India scored 325. The hosts opened the bowling with Harbhajan Singh in the second innings and he took four wickets and Virender Sehwag took three as South Africa were bundled out for 121. Chasing 62 for victory, India won by eight wickets.
INDIA VS SRI LANKA, DEC 27, 2009, KOTLA
The fifth ODI between India and Sri Lanka was abandoned because the pitch was reckoned to be too dangerous after just 23.3 overs. Sanath Jayasuriya and Tillkaratne Dilshan were struck numerous blows on the body as the ball reared off a surface which had uneven grass covering and had numerous bald and dry patches as debutant pacer Sudeep Tyagi briefly metamorphosed into a combination of Marshall and Ambrose. The ICC match referee Alan Hurst deemed the pitch to be very poor.
INDIA VS SOUTH AFRICA, NAGPUR, 2015
If one were to be kind to the pitch at the VCA for the third Test between India and South Africa, one can call it a dustbowl. India managed to win inside three days and with it they won the series, but no one remembers that triumph as Kohli's men won on a joke of a surface. 33 wickets of the 40 fell to spinners. In the first innings, South Africa were 12 for 5 before being all out for 79. No batsman reached 50 in all the four innings. The ICC promptly dismissed the surface as poor.