Proteas must pitch in

THE SOUTH African cricket team knew exactly what they were going to get in terms of pitches in India.

Before they departed I asked Russell Domingo – somewhat tongue in cheek – if, given that India seem to have a few good young quicks (Varon Aaron, Umesh Yadav and the more senior Ishant Sharma) whether they might be inclined to prepare pitches with more pace and bounce.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Domingo smiled, “some of our guys have been in touch with their friends over there and have been told that if it doesn’t spin before lunch on day one then it’s a poor pitch.”

Once India had lost the T20s and ODI series there was no way they were going to allow South Africa to play on surfaces on which they were in any way comfortable. Mohali was that kind of surface. But it was certainly not unplayable.

There has been far too much fussing and moaning among South African viewers and supporters about that pitch for the first Test.

Home ground advantage means something and India – just like England did in the Ashes with green and seaming pitches – prepared a surface that was suited to their strengths.

It wasn’t as bad a pitch as everyone has made it out to be, just different from what we may be used to in this country.

It may not have been the worst pitch some of the more experienced players in that SA side have seen.

In fact while all the moaning and groaning was going on over here, I recalled the 2008 tour when South Africa 1-0 up in a three Test series went to Kanpur and encountered what India’s then coach Gary Kirsten described as “the worst first day Test pitch,” he’d have ever seen.

On that occasion the ICC saw fit to censure the BCCI over the state of the pitch, with chief executive Dave Richardson describing the pitch as “poor.”

Mohali wasn’t as bad. The batting – from both sides, but more so from South Africa given they lost – was terrible. With the exception of Murali Vijay, batsmen didn’t properly apply themselves and put far too much stock in what wasn’t happening as to what was.

South Africa can expect more surfaces suited to spin bowling as the series unfolds, the batsmen’s task is to properly adjust and apply themselves.

In the same way that you would have to apply your technique on a bouncy Wanderers pitch, so you should adjust your game to playing on slow and low surfaces.

It’s called a ‘test’ for a reason. Quit the moaning about the pitch and get on with playing.