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'Why crib? They have no right to moan about Indian pitches when...': Gavaskar fires back at Australia's 'mind games'
Having heard enough of pitch talk, the legendary Sunil Gavaskar has responded fiercely, pointing out Australia have no right to complain about the quality of Indian surfaces as their own wickets have come under scrutiny.
The India vs Australia Border-Gavaskar Trophy is yet to start but talks of pitch have already taken centre-stage. Everytime a Test series is played in India, noises surrounding the pitch come to the fore, and given what transpired the last time Australia toured for the BGT in 2017, this year's hoopla surrounding the wickets was on the cards. The question on everyone's mind, especially Australia's is: Will the pitches in Nagpur, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Dharamsala assist Indian spinners further highlighting the whole 'home advantage' aspect, or will it have something for the pacers too? Considering Australia's preparation and their bring it on attitude, indications are that they are fully ready to expect turning tracks.
Last month, former Australia wicketkeeper Ian Healy fired the first shots saying that 'If India produce unreasonable wickets like last time, Australia won't win'. This triggered a lot of debate with former cricketers playing musical chair over getting on to the pitch bandwagon. Having heard enough of it, the legendary Sunil Gavaskar has responded fiercely, pointing out Australia have no right to complain about the quality of Indian pitches as their own wickets have come under scrutiny. Gavaskar, the former India captain, singled out the Brisbane pitch at Gabba, which saw the Test match between Australia and South Africa in December last year finishing in two days, and pointed out how the surface was a lot more dangerous than any Indian pitch can ever be.
"The Aussies have started the mind games by talking about the pitches that were on offer when they toured here last. A country where a Test match finishes in two days has no right to moan about Indian pitches. The Brisbane game against South Africa finished in two days. It's not just the matter of the game finishing in two days, but the kind of pitch that was prepared. With the ball flying all over the place it was dangerous to life and limb. On a turner the only issue is the reputation of batters that is in danger and not their life and limb," Gavaskar wrote in his column for Mid-Day.
A total of 143 overs were bowled across all four innings, with South Africa scoring 152 and 99 while Australia replied with 218 and 35/4. Blink and you'll miss: That's how the entire Test can be summed up if one was to provide a gist of the whole game. With 34 wickets falling across 144 overs, and Australia winning inside two days, the ICC gave the Gabba pitch a 'below average' rating. Gavaskar insisted that if Australians can take advantage of their conditions, there is nothing wrong in India doing the same.
"What the two-day finish in Brisbane showed was that even the best batters of both teams had their hearts in their mouths. Of course, some sections of the Oz media made excuses saying since it’s a batters game, a pitch like that gives the bowlers some chance. Oh yeah, then why crib when the pitches in the sub-continent turn from Day one. Playing spin is the ultimate challenge for a 'batter as it tests his footwork and the use of the crease to nullify the turn. There are mind games with the bowler too, that's why those who score a century or more in the sub-continent will be recognised as great batters," added Gavaskar.
