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Cricket PlayersIndia vs Sri Lanka: Pitch in focus after rank turner sees 16 wickets fall on first day of pink-ball Test
In the ongoing game at Bengaluru, there is little cricketing logic behind rolling out a vicious turner. There is uneven bounce also with some of the balls are keeping low.
Pink-ball cricket is a move to revive Test cricket; to bring in the crowds in the evening after working hours, and attract them with exciting action and good atmosphere.
In India, unless the authorities step in and ensure good pitches are dished out, it might prove to be a failed experiment.
Already, the extra lacquer on the ball makes it more challenging for the batter to face than a red ball. The pink one skids and comes rapidly off the pitch. An unusually helpful playing surface makes it an impossible battle for the batters.
Now, in two of three Tests in India, the curators have dished out rank turners. In Ahmedabad last year, the home side went for a spin-friendly track and the Test was over inside two days. In the game at Motera, left-arm spinner Axar Patel wreaked havoc as the ball skidded off the abrasive surface.
That time, there was reason for India to exploit home advantage as the series was tied at 1-1.
In the ongoing game at Bengaluru, there is little cricketing logic behind rolling out a vicious turner. There is uneven bounce also with some of the balls are keeping low. If you go on the backfoot, you are a sitting duck. The batters were cats on a hot tin roof. Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja had no chance at all. Kohli was trapped leg before when he played on the back foot, he had covered the spin of the ball but it stayed low to beat his bat. For Jadeja it kicked up and took his gloves as he leaned back to make room for the cut.
Earlier, at Eden Gardens in 2019, the curator had left a thick layer of grass (6mm) to guard against the ball getting abrasive and making it difficult to sight the ball. The game ended inside three days.
But in this Test, seeing spin from the first ball took everyone by surprise. India are vastly superior to Sri Lanka, they are leading the series 1-0 and the opponents are psychologically down after the crushing defeat by an innings and 222 runs.
Coach Rahul Dravid was out during the tea break along with batting coach Vikram Rathour to inspect the pitch, talking to a groundstaff member trying to understand the surface. When the camera panned into the Indian dressing balcony, it caught the batters watching the replays and exchanging smiles in amusement.
In the first over of spin, introduced as early as the eight over of the innings, there was a puff of dust when left-arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya turned a well flighted ball across the blade of Hanuma Vihari. The Andhra batter showed fine technique against the turning ball, playing some crisp drives on his way to 31. It was a pity to see him get an unplayable ball which took the shoulder off his blade to be caught behind.
In an interview to this paper ahead of the Test match, the ball manufacturer had already expressed his apprehension regarding the kind of surface that would be dished out. “Our biggest anxiety is centered around the surface on which the match would be played,” Paras Anand, marketing director, SG had said. “Because honestly, we did not make any drastic changes to the pink balls that were used in Kolkata (November 2019 against Bangladesh) and Ahmedabad Tests.”
The game is proving to be a poor advertisement for pink ball but not for the quality of the ball. It would have been questioned if the ball had lost colour.
Maintaining the over rate usually is a challenge for any side on the first day when the pacers are in operation, by the 55th over Sri Lanka were ahead of the rate by nine overs with so much spin being employed.
Shreyas Iyer, who was the only one to defy the odds to get runs (92) on the pitch, said: “If you look at it from a championship point of view, we obviously want to win every game and that cannot be achieved if you are put on such challenging wickets. And, I am really happy that there are challenges in every format of the game and obviously wicket you play on. It's really fun to go and explore such kind of wickets and perform at the highest level."
