Crumbling track sets second Test on rocky course
NEW DELHI: The first puff of dust came off the fifth ball of the day, a full Stuart Broad delivery to Rohit Sharma. In the ninth over, left-arm spinner Jack Leach’s drifter again kicked up some dust. So did the Moeen Ali delivery that dipped brilliantly to sneak through the gap between Virat Kohli’s bat and pad to clip the top of off-stump. All this happened before lunch. These are ominous signs, even by Indian standards. Indian pitches can’t be typecast because of the varying nature of base soil, but they generally aid batting till the third day before wear and tear afford purchase for spinners.
Chennai, however, seems a different deal altogether. Not often do you see two pitches on the same square sporting completely different top soil shades— the one used in the first Test was dusty red, while the second one bore a darker look. The pitch report before toss spoke of a dry, completely different surface that may not have been rolled a lot for it to firm up. It was in keeping with earlier reports that said even though the base will have local red soil, and the top layer will be primarily black clay that breaks down faster.
Those puffs of dust are proof of rapid disintegration of the top soil. And it spun. A lot. If the pitch in the first Test spun more than 3° on average, Day 1 of the second Test began with 4.4° in the first session before going past 5 after tea. Leach, who generally bowls better in the second innings, looked threatening for the bulk of the 26 overs he bowled on Saturday.
What can you expect from such a pitch? If the top soil comes off easily, roughs outside the crease are created earlier than expected. Balls turn and bounce more when they land on the rough, like the one that bamboozled Kohli. The odd ball will turn more, some stay low and some spit off the cracks. “You’re never in on this wicket, so it was important to be positive,” said India vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane after play. “The key was good footwork. We had a strategy (with the sweep) and wanted to make them bowl to our strengths. The first 20-30 balls were important. Then you get an idea of the pace and bounce.”
The pitch for the first Test took two days to change from a slow strip to an unpredictable track for batting. This one will wear out quicker. It’s thus not a very ideal pitch for Test cricket.
“It is a difficult track where you don’t know whether to come forward or remain on the backfoot,” said Sunil Gavaskar while doing TV commentary. The only reason India finished the day with a smile was because they had won the toss and batted.
Rahane made no bones about it. “We knew it was going to turn from Day 1, so obviously, it was good to win the toss,” he said.
Batting technique too needs a tweak on this pitch. Playing against the spin, for which Kohli paid a hefty price, is a strict no early in the innings. Rahane showed how coming down the pitch negates slower bowlers. Centurion Rohit Sharma, like Joe Root in the first Test, used the tried and tested sweep shot. He didn’t look entirely at ease executing it at times but Sharma got the results till he was dismissed, ironically, trying the sweep.
“I was sweeping from the rough (outside off-stump) because it’s a good option as you can’t be leg-before. It also cuts out the chance of the ball going up. It’s a percentage shot on this pitch,” Sharma said in the media interaction after play. He said 350 would be good enough on the pitch where something is “happening every ball”.
Given how the pitch behaved, it’s remarkable India are not far from that target. England too have batsmen who adapt well. And they have a template now, having watched Sharma and Rahane go about their business against the spinning ball. “As you saw with Rohit Sharma and Rahane, once you get a partnership going with that older ball it can get a little bit easier,” said Leach. “So we have to certainly believe we can do the same when we come to bat.”
It’s a tall ask though, especially on a pitch clearly earmarked to trouble batsmen more with every passing hour. Today’s 350 could feel like 500 tomorrow.