"With WTC Points At Stake...": Rahul Dravid On Pitches For India vs Australia Test Series

India's head coach Rahul Dravid doesn't regret one bit playing the ongoing Test series against Australia on spinner-friendly tracks as World Test Championship points are at premium and most countries are preparing result-oriented pitches. While India lead Australia 2-1 in the four-Test series, the "poor" rating of Indore track by ICC match referee Chris Broad has once again raised questions about playing on rank turners, where all the games finished inside three days.

"I won't go too much into it. Match referee is entitled to share his opinion. Doesn't really matter if I agree with his reading or not. Doesn't matter what I think. But sometimes with WTC points at stake, you tend to play on wickets that produce results," Dravid was straightforward in his defence of the three tracks in Nagpur, Delhi and Indore.

However, he didn't forget to mention that data analysis of tracks prepared by home teams in last few years has shown that the 22-yard strips in most places have been challenging.

"It can happen, not only in India but across the world if you see, sometimes it is difficult to get that balance perfectly right for everyone and that can happen not only here but in other places as well," the man with 164 Test matches under his belt said.

Dravid did give a bit of idea as to what has been the trigger behind asking for these kind of raging turners. It was the 2021 Test match in Kanpur against New Zealand where India failed to pick up nine wickets on the final day.

"There is a huge premium on results and if you draw a game like we did in Kanpur versus New Zealand, that sets you back in a home game. When you have 12 for a win and 4 for draw, you want to get a win ahead of a draw," he stated.

There was a hint of sarcasm as well as irritation when he spoke about the tracks in South Africa where India played three Tests early last year.

"We have played on some challenging wickets when we go overseas also. Played in South Africa recently (2022), where spinners were completely taken out of the game," he said curtly.

"And everyone wants to produce wickets where eventually one wants results. You will probably prepare wickets where the ball holds a bit more sway over the bat and that's necessary and part of the game," Dravid didn't deny the bowlers' advantage.

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Cricket India vs Australia, 2023 India Cricket Team Australia Cricket Team Rahul Dravid