Former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh has blamed Indian team management for preparing spin-friendly wickets in India to finish Tests in two-and-a-half days, which has in return also dented the confidence of batters. The spin-friendly pitches in India have made run-scoring difficult not only for the visiting teams but also for star home batters.
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According to the fourth-leading wicket-taker for India in Test cricket, Indian team management’s plan to win Tests inside three days by preparing spin-friendly tracks is hurting the players in the longer run.
“We’ve started playing on pitches that turn a lot more. We wanted to win, and we did win, but we wanted to win in two and a half days. I think if we had produced normal pitches that started to turn from Day 3 and Day 4, we still would have won, but the batters would have gotten time to settle in. And we wouldn’t be discussing the problems of our batters against spinners. We dented the confidence of our batters because anybody get out (cheaply) on those pitches,” Harbhajan told Sports Tak.
The legendary spinner feels India should trust their bowlers to produce results on normal pitches instead of going for rank-turners. He believes that playing on good wickets will help Indian batters score runs, and their confidence level will also go up.
“We still have a chance (to rectify this). If we pay on good pitches, I don’t think anyone can beat India. The pacers that India have, the spin attack that there is, they would definitely win you Tests on Day 5 if not on Day 3. But if you play on good pitches, the batters will score runs, and their confidence will only go up when they score runs. So, I don’t think our batters have forgotten to play spin, but the conditions have been such (in the last few years) that it has become almost impossible,” he added.
India will play as many as five Tests at home in the ongoing 2024–25 season. The Rohit Sharma-led side will first face Bangladesh in a two-match Test series and then take on New Zealand in three red-ball matches.
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