You want to have pitches where there is good balance between bat and ball: Sunil Gavaskar

Legendary India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has come out with some bold remarks especially with regards to team India and the Indian curators, ahead of the fourth Test of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy, 2023.

The fourth Test is scheduled to be played at the iconic Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, from March 9, 2023. India are currently leading the four-match Test series 2-1 over the Australians.

However, even after having successfully retained the coveted trophy for the fourth consecutive time, India are yet to qualify for the all-important World Test Championship final. The massive loss in the third Test made things a bit tricky as India will have to win the fourth Test.

Has to be a little more thought on that - Sunil Gavaskar wants introspection on pitch

"I think there has to be a little more thought on that. This pitch has backfired in 2012-13 when Graeme Swann and Monty Panesar spun England to a win. I don't think it's a great idea to have pitches of this quality. You want to have pitches where there is a good balance between bat and ball. You want to have a pitch where for the first couple of days, the new-ball bowlers can get some help and the batters can play through the line and score runs. And then from Day 3 and 4, the ball is going to turn a little bit," the 73-year-old said while speaking to India Today.

The former India captain was one of the many cricket pundits to have been very critical of the type of surfaces being used in the ongoing Test series. However, he was of the opinion that it was pretty much essential to have pitches where there is a fair and equal competition between both the bat and ball.

He further cautioned India to not unnecessarily keep relying on their spin-bowling, as the opposition at one point would crack the code and use the weapon against them.

Gavaskar went on to state that irrespective of what the result of the fourth Test was ought to be, the Ahmedabad pitch had to be a neutral one in order to avoid getting any demerit points yet again by the International Cricket Council.

"I don't know what's going to happen in Ahmedabad. If the pitch in Ahmedabad is a raging turner, then India might go on to win but once again, the pitch might get demerit points."

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