Sunil Gavaskar defends Gautam Gambhir’s comments on Eden Gardens pitch, says 124 was chaseable

Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar has put his weight behind head coach Gautam Gambhir after the latter has been criticized for his comments on Eden Gardens pitch. Gambhir said they wanted this kind of a track and the curator delivered the same after India’s 30-run loss.

Gavaskar defended Gambhir’s comments and said the target of 124 runs was chaseable. The hosts were skittled out for a paltry score of 93 runs in the second innings as the batters could not deliver the goods.

Washington Sundar top-scored with 31 runs but none of the other batters could get going on a tricky pitch. India kept losing wickets at regular intervals and could not get any partnership.

Sunil Gavaskar said on India Today, “Totally agree with Gautam Gambhir. 124 was chaseable on this pitch. There was no question about it. A lot of people are talking about what the pitch was doing, but if you had a look at what Simon Harmer was doing in an over, how many of his deliveries were turning? He was mixing it up really well. He bowled straight and got the odd one to turn. So, it was not a vicious turning pitch. It was a pitch on which you needed to bat as if you were playing a five-day Test, not a 50-over match or a Twenty20 where, after three dot balls, you try to play a break-out-of-jail shot. That’s the issue. One hundred and twenty-four should have been chased with at least five wickets in hand with the kind of batting line-up India had.”

On the other hand, the Little Master showered praise on Temba Bavuma after the South African captain scored a match-winning knock of unbeaten 55 runs in the second innings.

“The Indian batters had the example of Temba Bavuma. You may forget what happened the previous day, but Bavuma had played an innings of exceptional character just hours earlier. He batted with real temperament, technique, and dedication. That should at least have been at the back of their minds.”

India and South Africa will take on each other in the second Test at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati, from Saturday onwards.