"Destroyed Test Cricket": Harbhajan Singh's Brutal Take On India's Loss Against South Africa In 1st Test

Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh heavily criticised the team management for preparing rank turners following the hosts' 30-run loss against South Africa in the first Test match at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday. Chasing a modest target of 124, India were bundled out for 93 with just Washington Sundar scoring more than 30. Following India's loss, the Eden Gardens pitch came under the scanner with 15 wickets falling on Day 2 of the match. Harbhajan went on to say that such pitches have destroyed Test cricket before adding that tracks like these will not allow players to grow.

“They have completely destroyed Test cricket. RIP to Test cricket, rest in peace Test cricket. The kind of work they have done, the kind of pitches that have been made for so many years now, I have been seeing it. No one talks about it because it is fine, the team is winning, someone is taking wickets, someone is becoming great by taking those wickets, so everyone feels everything is going well. But I feel that this practice has not started today. It has been going on for many years, and I feel it is the wrong way of playing,” Harbhajan said on YouTube.

“You are not moving forward in any way, you are just going around in circles like an ox tied to a mill. You are winning, but there is no real benefit. As a cricketer, you are not growing. So I feel it is high time to see and reflect on this, that playing matches on such pitches where your batsmen are not even sure how to score runs, and you are making them look like they do not know how to bat. Then what difference remains between a capable bowler and a capable batsman if the conditions become so favourable that people are getting out because of the pitch and not because of skill?” he added.

Pitches have often hogged headlines whenever a Test match has ended early in the subcontinent. As the Kolkata Test ended in just two session on Day 3, the Indian team management's decision to prepare such a surface was widely criticised. After the game, even India head coach Gautam Gambhir admitted that it was exactly the sort of surface that India wanted.

Topics mentioned in this article

Harbhajan Singh India Cricket Team South Africa Cricket Team India vs South Africa 2025, India Cricket