One can feel the buzz at the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) premises as Eden Gardens gets ready for its first Test in six years.
The India-South Africa clash begins on Friday. An exciting game is expected, with both teams having an impressive run this year.
India have been on the winning side on most occasions — barring one ODI series loss in Australia. The Proteas, on the other hand, have had a victorious World Test Championship (WTC) campaign in the last cycle and, more recently, avoided a series defeat in challenging conditions in Pakistan.
In home conditions, India obviously have the edge. Batting-wise, the current form of openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul, captain Shubman Gill and spinner all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja certainly bodes well for India, while keeper-batter Rishabh Pant's return will also bolster their line-up.
But the bowling does not evoke the same confidence. On paper, it does appear to be a formidable attack with Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep looking after the pace department and Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel forming the spin group. The attack has variety.
But then, despite the presence of Siraj, Akash and Kuldeep in the India A bowling attack, South Africa's A team managed to chase down a 417-run target to win the second four-day fixture at the BCCI Centre of Excellence ground in Bengaluru on Sunday.
All three are India's frontline bowlers in the longest format and bowled 56 overs (Siraj 17, Akash 22 and Kuldeep 17) between them. Yet, South Africa A, with captain Temba Bavuma being the lone player of note in their line-up, scored close to 400 runs (392) on the final-day track at well above four runs an over.
That's not good news for India.
Will the team management continue with Kuldeep as the third spinner alongside Jadeja and Washington? Or, will Axar Patel return to the Test XI?
In the A game that concluded on Sunday, Kuldeep's match figures read 2/147 off 28 overs.
"That pitch in Bengaluru was extremely placid. Of course, it can't be an excuse for not being able to defend such a big total. But usually, in these matches, bowlers tend to try stuff which they cannot in a Test. The intensity in a Test is always of a different level," said a BCCI official on Monday.
"Just one game shouldn't affect Kuldeep's place in the XI. Before this South Africa series, the team needed him to be back in the red-ball flow, and he has had that now."
"Kuldeep was there for the limited-overs tour of Australia in the first place, and then, all of a sudden, was sent back for this A game. It's not easy. He had to be given some time to make that bit of mental adjustment," feels former national selector Devang Gandhi.
"Besides, the intensity in a Test match will always differ. So, it's not that one would be too worried about what took place in an A tour game."
Wicket watch
The nature of the Eden pitch will also determine India's XI. Head coach Gautam Gambhir, along with batting coach Sitanshu Kotak, visited the Eden on Monday morning to have a look at the 22-yard surface.
Given the nature of the soil here, a bit of extra bounce cannot be ruled out altogether. Overall, it's expected to be a good batting wicket with some extra help for spinners, most likely from Day III.
From the discussion that Gambhir has had with Eden curator Sujan Mukherjee, it has been learnt that the India head coach is "reasonably pleased" with the surface on offer.
Precisely, India shouldn't be too worried about playing on such a track. Before the start of this home season, they had categorically mentioned that they don't wish to play on rank turners.
The 0-3 thrashing at home last year against New Zealand is still fresh in the memory of most and South Africa have good spinners in left-armer Keshav Maharaj and off-break bowler Simon Harmer.
"The Proteas have only two specialist left-handers in their squad (Tony de Zorzi and Ryan Rickelton). That somewhat brightens Axar's chances in the XI. If there were more left-handers, then Washington would surely have continued," the Board official said.
"If it's a slow, dry wicket, Axar comes in for Kuldeep. If there's a bit of bounce, Kuldeep must play," Devang emphasised.