Former Australian opener Matthew Hayden slammed the Indore pitch which has been offered by the curator for the ongoing third Test match at the Holkar Cricket Stadium. India was skittled out for a paltry score of 109 runs after Rohit Sharma decided to ball first.
Steven Smith, Australia’s stand-in skipper, quickly got Matt Kunhemann into action in the sixth over of the innings. The left-arm orthodox spinner, who is playing his second Test match, struck in the very first over he bowled as he dismissed Indian skipper Rohit Sharma, who didn’t look settled.
From there on, it was just one-way traffic as none of the Indian batters could go past the 25-run mark. In fact, the Australian spinners took seven wickets in the opening session (84-7) and got an average of 4.9 degrees (4.8 degrees in the first hour of play) of turn in the first session.
It was turning miles on the opening day of the Test match and many cricket experts were flabbergasted by the pitch.
Hayden said during commentary in the first session: “You are allowed to have a four-five days Test match. At this pace I feel sorry for the fans, I don’t think this Test will go for Day 4.”
Hayden continued: “This is why I’ve got a problem with these conditions. There’s no way in the world that a spin bowler should come on in the sixth over. 4.8 degrees, that’s massive turn. That’s the sort of turn you’d expect day three. You’ve got to give batters a chance… Day one, day two should be about batting.”
Hayden continued his attack on the pitch, stating that these kinds of tracks are not good for the health of Test cricket.
“No way spinners should come to bowl in the sixth over. This is the reason I don’t like these kinds of surfaces. It shouldn’t be keeping this low and turning so much on Day 1. It doesn’t matter whether Australia wins this Test or India. These kinds of surfaces are not good for Test cricket.”
At 156-4 and leading by 47 runs, Australia has put themselves in front in the third Test match. Matt Kunhemann was the pick of the bowlers as he returned with figures of 5-16 whereas Usman Khawaja played a crucial knock of 60 runs. Khawaja added an imperative stand of 96 runs with Marnus Labuschagne.
