‘Indian Batters Aren’t That Good…’: Shubman Gill & Co Given Brutal Reality Check After Kolkata Debacle | Cricket News

India lost the Test inside three days. (PTI Photo)

Do Indian batters lack the skills to counter spinners on helpful pitches?

The three-match Test series against New Zealand last year and the recent Kolkata Test against South Africa paint a gloomy picture. However, in their defence, the opponents haven’t fared any better given how challenging such surfaces have been.

So why the obsession with dishing out rank turners? It’s a question on everyone’s mind, including former Australia wicketkeeper-batter Brad Haddin, who claims that Indian batters aren’t equipped to handle bowlers on surfaces that offer plenty of assistance to the spinners.

“India play their best cricket when they put a big total on the board, and then they make the opposition claustrophobic with their fields. Their spinners are better than anyone on those surfaces. Their batters actually aren’t that good of players of spin on a surface like that,” Haddin said on the Willow Talk podcast.

“… they (India) are leaving too much to chance. It brings ordinary spinners into the game. Your skill and the craft of using your drift, the different angles of the crease go out of it,” he added.

Toss becomes the decisive factor on rank turners. India’s wretched luck with toss continued in Kolkata, and South Africa captain Temba Bavuma expectedly opted to bat first, knowing fully well that the pitch will start crumbling and become difficult to bat on as the Test progresses.

To India’s credit, they did bowl out South Africa for a low score thanks to the brilliance of Jasprit Bumrah. However, in the second dig, on a crumbling pitch, the visitors ended up with a lead, thanks to an unbeaten half-century from Bavuma, that was good enough for a 30-run win.

In the chase of 124, India were bowled out for 93, with the Test ending well inside three days.

“They have completely destroyed Test cricket. RIP Test cricket,” said former India spinner Harbhajan Singh on his YouTube channel as he too questioned the quality of pitches at home.