Sunil Gavaskar supports Gautam Gambhir in Eden Gardens pitch row, blasts KL Rahul & Co. for horror show

India National Cricket Team batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has come out in support of the head coach Gautam Gambhir over his remarks on the pitch at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata for the first Test.

Sunil Gavaskar agreed with Gautam Gambhir's assessment that there were no demons in the Eden Gardens pitch and blasted the Indian batters for their horror show in the first Test against the South Africa National Cricket Team.

Totally agree with Gautam Gambhir. 124 was chaseable - Sunil Gavaskar

The Kolkata Test match between India and South Africa became a red-hot topic of discussion among the fans because of the pitch that was produced for the game.

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The surface was excessively bowling-friendly as it turned from the very first day and had an uneven bounce, which made life hell for the batters. South Africa scored 159 and 153 in their two innings, while India scored 189 in the first innings and got a target of 124 runs to chase.

However, India couldn't chase the small total and were bundled out for 93, facing a humiliating 30-run loss to go down 0-1 in the series. The likes of Kris Srikkanth, Harbhajan Singh, Dale Steyn, and Michael Vaughan blamed the pitch for India's loss, but Gautam Gambhir slammed the batters instead and said that there were no demons in the pitch.

Sunil Gavaskar agreed with Gautam Gambhir and said that 124 should have been chased by the Indian batters at any cost.

"Totally agree with Gautam Gambhir. 124 was chaseable on this pitch. There was no question about it,” Sunil Gavaskar told 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.

I fully agree with Gautam Gambhir that there was nothing wrong with the pitch - Sunil Gavaskar

Sunil Gavaskar added that the surface at the Eden Gardens was not a vicious turning pitch and only odd balls turned.

“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,” he said.

“I fully agree with Gautam Gambhir that there was nothing wrong with the pitch. The oddball turned on Day 3, that’s normal. How many of Maharaj’s deliveries turned? How many of Jadeja’s or Axar’s turned?"

The Indian batters had the example of Temba Bavuma - Sunil Gavaskar

The batting legend further said that the Indian batters displayed poor technique and temperament, which resulted in their loss.

“People are calling it a spinning pitch. It was nothing vicious. Poor technique and poor temperament have landed us in this situation,” he said.

Sunil Gavaskar also lauded Temba Bavuma, who was the only half-centurion in the innings, and said that the Indian batters should have learned from him.

"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,” Gavaskar said.

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