The controversy over preparation of pitches for the Test matches against England refuses to go away. In the latest twist to the story, the BCCI has, reportedly, asked the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) to put East Zone curator Ashish Bhowmick in charge of the surface for the third Test beginning at the Eden Gardens on December 5.
He has replaced the vastly experienced CAB’s Prabir Mukherjee, who reportedly, refused to comply with the Board instructions to prepare a rank turner for the crucial Test here. The four-match series is now tied 1-1.
Even after swallowing the bitter pill — the strategy of preparing a turner backfired in Mumbai — Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni does not seem to have got the message.
The Indian batsmen came up short against the English spin duo of Monty Panesar and Graeme Swann at the Wankhede Stadium.
And the Indian spin trio of Pragyan Ojha, Ravichandran Ashwin and Harbhajan Singh ran into big trouble against England captain Alastair Cook and the aggressive Kevin Pietersen.
Despite going one-up on a slow turner in Ahmedabad, Dhoni demanded a stark turner in Mumbai. Obviously, the 10-wicket defeat in the second Test has done nothing to convince Team India that its strategy is a flawed one.
Asked for his comments after Dhoni made a strong request for a spinning track in Kolkata, Prabir Mukherjee said, “Two pitches can never be the same logically. It’s most unethical if the Indian captain makes such statements in public. ”
Keywords: India-England Test series, spin track, BCCI, Dhoni
I don't see anything unethical about it. Dhoni is asking for a pitch that would not unduly favor the team that bats first. If we are lions at home and lambs abroad, it obviously suggests that the same description would suit every team we play with. Our batsmen have to learn to play in difficult conditions, whether it is spinning track or a bouncy one. The clarity Dhoni has needs to be appreciated.
Dhoni not learning from his mistakes. Instead of relying on the pitch to
defeat the opposition have faith in your team and captaincy! Stop being
afraid of losing a toss and having to play a difficult game! He only
these kinds of pitches because he is afraid of facing England from a
disadvantageous situation....
This is a losers attitude Mr Dhoni!
I endorse Dhoni's views on the pitches. Flat tracks do not help anybody but the batsmen. Just take a look on the 2nd test match..It was so ineteresting to watch that people were waiting impatiently for the next day's play to start, which renewed their interest in test cricket... Flat pitches are the reason India has not been able to produce great fast bowlers. Prepare the pitches so that it is challenging for batsmen to score (Seaming or spinning)beacuse bowlers anyway get hit if they bowl a wrong line and length anyway. The contest between bat and ball should be even.
We should never make pitches which are tailormade for spinners. Indian team should learn from the huge defeat suffered in Mumbai. During the last so many years, we were making pitches in the subcontinent suiting spinners. Hence, our batsmen could not accomodate themselves easily to the bouncy tracks in England and Australia. The reverses suffered by our team during the last England tour proves it.
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