IND vs SA: Pitch in focus! Shubman Gill, team management not 'pleased' with Kolkata wicket

NEW DELHI: With three days left for the first Test between India and South Africa, the pitch at Eden Gardens has drawn attention. The match begins on November 14, and this will be India’s first Test at the iconic venue since 2019.

Since the surface has not been used for a Test in years, the early signs of the pitch condition have raised questions.




The Indian team started training on Tuesday in Kolkata. Shubman Gill, Jasprit Bumrah, Sai Sudharsan, Ravindra Jadeja, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy took part in the optional training session.

During practice, Indian team captain Shubman Gill was seen discussing plans with head coach Gautam Gambhir. Gill and Jaiswal spent time in the nets facing throwdowns, while Jaiswal, Jadeja, Bumrah, Sudharsan and Nitish Kumar Reddy worked on catching drills.

After about three hours, Gambhir, Sitanshu Kotak, Morne Morkel and Gill inspected the centre pitch. Morkel and Gill checked the surface and then spoke with curator Sujan Mukherjee for around 15 minutes. Their reaction suggested they were not fully "pleased" with what they saw, news agency PTI reported.

The pitch has not been watered for a week and looked dry and brown, with some grass patches.

Later in the evening, after South Africa’s practice ended, CAB president Sourav Ganguly and other officials examined the pitch and spoke with curator Sujan Mukherjee. The ground staff watered the nearby pitches but left the main pitch dry.

Earlier this season, in two Ranji Trophy matches at this venue, pacers Akash Deep and Mohammed Shami did not get much help on the first day, although Shami later found reverse swing.

Ganguly has said that the team management has not asked for a “rank turner”.

South Africa have a mix of pace and spin options. Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen lead the pace attack, while Keshav Maharaj, Simon Harmer and Senuran Muthusamy form the spin group. Harmer took 13 wickets, Muthusamy 11, and Maharaj 9 in the recent two-Test series against Pakistan. Muthusamy also scored 106 runs and was named Player of the Series.
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