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Cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar fiercely defended the Indian pitches after a chaotic second day of the fifth and final Test of the ongoing 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. India i Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) in Sydney on Saturday 4 January.
After a staggering 15 wickets fell on Day 2 of the ongoing New Year’s Test, the former Indian captain turned the spotlight on the grass surface at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), criticizing the track for its challenging nature. He also pointed out the double standard in on-field criticism among former cricketers.
Sunil Gavaskar slams double standards and criticizes SCG toss when 15 wickets down
Sunil Gavaskar expressed his frustration at how Indian pitches often face harsh scrutiny, but tough conditions abroad rarely spark similar outrage among former cricketers and cricket pundits. Highlighting the lush field at the SCG that surprised even Glenn McGrath, he mentioned that the former Indian players have yet to complain despite their clear difficulty.
The legendary batsman has stressed that if such a pitch had been prepared in India, all Australians would have gone to war. The well-known commentator has also emphasized that the Indian cricket team always faces foreign challenges without making excuses and if they lose, they accept it gracefully.
After stumps on Day 2 at the SCG, Sunil Gavaskar told ABC Grandstand Radio: “If 15 wickets fell (in one day) in India, all hell would have broken loose. We had Glenn McGrath saying that we never had seen so much grass. have you heard any ex-cricketers moaning on the field? when we go out and play cricket. and if we are beaten, we are beaten abroad very difficult to win at home teams.”
Cows could have gone to graze there: Sunil Gavaskar
Gavaskar also expressed concern about the surface at the SCG, saying that this is not a suitable Test match as it looked unlikely that the match would go to the fourth day between India and Australia. On a hilarious note, the former Indian captain also joked that the Sydney pitch was so grassy that it could have easily served as cow pasture.
He further noted: “I said when we saw the pitch yesterday, the cows could have gone to graze on it. That’s not the ideal Test match pitch you want because you want it to go into a fourth and fifth day. Unless it rains, I don’t see us being here on the fourth day.”
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Sunil Gavaskar takes aim at Australian and English pundits for criticism of India’s field after 15-wicket slump in Sydney
Meanwhile, Sunil Gavaskar hit back at former Australian and English cricketers who often criticize Indian pitches and said that Indians never complain about foreign conditions.
He pointed to the double standard, stating that if 15 wickets had fallen in a single day in India, there would have been a huge outcry, but Indian cricketers are not complaining about the pitch conditions at the SCG.
Gavaskar signed off by saying, “Former English and Australian cricketers always talk about the pitches and conditions in India. We’re not whiners; we’re not whiners. You’ll never find us complaining, but with 15 wickets a day in the India, there would be hell.”
