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'England are not behind because of the pitch': Mark Butcher feels Chennai Test is 'beyond England'
India vs England: Mark Butcher believes the Chennai pitch is not the reason England find themselves behind India in the second Test in Chennai.
Former batsman Mark Butcher is not a fan of the turning Chepauk surface, but believes that is not the reason England find themselves behind India in the second Test in Chennai. The visitors, who took the opening Test by 227 runs, began Day 3 almost 250 runs behind and by the time lunch was taken, India's lead had stretched to 351 runs. With England batting last, Butcher reckons it might be too late for the visitors to save this Test match.
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"First of all, let me make this one point. England are not behind because of the pitch. They are behind because of Rohit Sharma’s brilliant batting in the first innings and because they did not bowl very well on a surface where the ball was going through the top from Day 1. To be frank with you, the game is probably beyond England as it is at the moment," Butcher said on Star Sports.
Having said that, Butcher admitted he's not inclined towards surfaces that offer turn from Day 1. The Chennai strip used for the second Test has come under scrutiny for being too spin friendly, something England have clearly struggled to tackle. They were bundled out or 134 in the first innings, conceding a first-innings lead of 195 runs, with India's premier spinner R Ashwin claiming 5/43 – his 29th five-wicket-haul in Tests.
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India themselves found it a lot tougher to bat in the second innings. They headed into lunch 156/6, losing five wickets in the morning session with Moeen Ali and Leach accounting for five of the six Indian wickets to fall. Irrespective of England's struggles, Butcher feels rank turners as extreme as these should be avoided.
"For me, it's not about the pitch or who's on top or who's winning or whether it's unfair on England. England are out there. You've got to play on what you've been given. Of England were 250 runs in front on this surface, it still wouldn’t be a good pitch for me, that’s all," Butcher explained.
"You can have teams on top on flat ones, you can have teams on top on pitches where it does play a bit. My opinion is that the ball should not be going through the top on Day 1, on any surface in any country, anytime, anywhere in Test match cricket. "
