IND vs SA 2025: ‘Not a vicious turner’ - Sunil Gavaskar gives verdict on Kolkata pitch

Published - 18 Nov 2025, 12:19 IST | Updated - 18 Nov 2025, 12:19 IST

There has been significant debate surrounding the pitch used for the first Test between India and South Africa at Eden Gardens, especially after Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir confirmed that the team had indeed asked for a surface that offered spin. While the decision drew criticism from several quarters, former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar backed the call, insisting that the pitch was not a vicious turner, as some suggested.

India went on to lose the first Test against South Africa by 30 runs in Kolkata as South African spinner Simon Harmer proved to be the difference-maker, claiming eight wickets across both innings. The Indian batters struggled to counter the turn generated by the Proteas bowlers, ultimately falling short in a match they were expected to control.

“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,” Gavaskar said to India Today.

“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,” he added.

After the match, the Indian head coach further clarified his views on the pitch, stating that the 123-run target set by South Africa was certainly chaseable. He admitted that the Indian batters did not apply themselves, failing to show the necessary discipline and temperament required in such conditions. Their inability to defend properly and play with patience, he said, led to wickets falling cheaply and ultimately cost India the game.

“The point is you should know how to play turn. This is what we asked for, and this is what we got. I thought the curator was very supportive, and I still believe that, regardless of how the wicket was, 123 was chaseable. I felt that if you were willing to put your head down, and if you have a solid defence, if you have the temperament, you can definitely score and, it might not be a wicket, which is going to be very, very flamboyant where you can play those big shots, but if you’re willing to put your head down, definitely it’s a wicket where you can score,” said Gambhir in the post-match press conference.