The Eden Gardens pitch controversy just took a dramatic turn, and it comes straight from former BCCI President and current CAB chief Sourav Ganguly. In an interview with India Today, Ganguly openly admitted that the Kolkata pitch used for the recent Test was “bad for batting” and that this wasn’t an accident. According to him, the demand for such a surface came directly from coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Shubman Gill.
But there was more because another Ganguly comment triggered a massive debate: Are Team India panicking to secure World Test Championship points?
Speaking about the controversial Eden track, Ganguly revealed that the team management specifically requested a pitch that would heavily assist bowlers. He suggested that the pressure of qualifying for the World Test Championship Final has pushed the team into a state of urgency.
In his words:
“Sometimes because of the World Test Championship, they panic. They need the points, especially at the home ground. So, they want to win Test matches at any cost.”
This statement clearly hints that Team India is fearing another WTC setback, something that already happened last cycle, when India failed to qualify largely because of a disastrous 3–0 home defeat to New Zealand.
The worrying part? India haven’t been able to dominate on these extremely spin-friendly surfaces. The team has already lost three Tests to New Zealand, which directly affected their WTC campaign. And right now, India are trailing 0–1 against South Africa in the current series.
Despite these warning signs, Ganguly suggests that the team hasn’t fully learned its lesson.
India’s upcoming fixtures aren’t going to get easier. A five-match Test series against Australia is scheduled next year, another tough opponent that could challenge India on rank turners.
If the team continues to struggle on such pitches, experts are questioning whether these surfaces are actually backfiring.
All attention now shifts to Guwahati, where the next Test will be played. With Ganguly’s revelations out in the open, the pressure on Gambhir and the team management has intensified.
One thing is clear: India’s approach to home pitches is now under national scrutiny, and fans are waiting to see whether the team can turn things around before the WTC race slips further away.
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