Sunil Gavaskar has pointed to the lack of technical acumen of the Indian batters which led to the loss against South Africa in the first Test at Eden Gardens.
The wicket has come under intense scrutiny, but the former captain says it wasn't a "vicious turner".
“So, it was not a vicious turning pitch. It was a pitch on which you needed to bat as if you were playing a five-day Test, not a 50-over match or a Twenty20 where, after three dot balls, you try to play a break-out-of-jail shot. That’s the issue... 124 should have been chased with at least five wickets in hand with the kind of batting line-up India had,” Gavaskar said on India Today.
“A lot of people are talking about what the pitch was doing, but if you had a look at what Simon Harmer was doing in an over, how many of his deliveries were turning? He was mixing it up really well. He bowled straight and got the odd one to turn,” he added.
The South African off-spinner picked up eight wickets in the Test.
“I totally agree with Gautam Gambhir. 124 was chaseable on this pitch. There was no question about it,” Gavaskar said. “I fully agree with Gautam Gambhir that there was nothing wrong with the pitch. The odd ball turned on Day 3, that’s normal. How many of Maharaj’s deliveries turned? How many of Jadeja’s or Axar’s turned?”
Gavaskar pointed out that the players' unwillingness to play domestic cricket was the reason behind their failure.