India’s ongoing struggle against quality spin bowling continues to raise questions. Still, it’s the nature of pitches that has once again grabbed the spotlight after yet another batting collapse at home. Over a year after their stunning 0-3 whitewash at the hands of New Zealand, India have now suffered a heavy defeat against South Africa in a Test match concluded well inside three days on a spin-friendly track in Kolkata.
The backlash has been swift, with sharp criticism aimed at the surfaces being prepared for Test cricket in India. Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh, known for his outspoken views, didn’t hold back, calling these pitches completely unsuitable for the purest form of the game. He pointed to India’s performance earlier this year in England, where lively yet fair pitches led to thrilling contests and victories for the visiting side.
“Test cricket has been completely RIP-ed. Rest in peace,” Harbhajan Singh said on his YouTube channel. “In England, the matches were fantastic—those were real Test pitches. There was thrill, technique, and skill on display. But what we are seeing here is the opposite.”
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Harbhajan, who has 417 Test wickets to his name, further claimed that these pitches leave even the best batters clueless, including legends like Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli.
“Skill doesn’t matter here; only the pitch is deciding everything. Even batters as good as Tendulkar or Kohli wouldn’t last long on such surfaces. One ball turns square, another keeps low, and a third bounces unpredictably. This makes proper cricket impossible,” he added.
Despite losing the toss, India bowled well to restrict South Africa to 159 in the first innings, with Jasprit Bumrah picking up a five-wicket haul. India responded with a 30-run lead, but on a deteriorating surface, South Africa clawed back. Their captain Temba Bavuma played a gritty half-century under difficult conditions, setting a lead of 123 that proved unassailable.
Harbhajan’s frustrations reflect a growing trend of criticism toward India’s over-reliance on turning tracks that negate skill and reduce Test cricket to a lottery.
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“It’s pathetic. We’ve been seeing this for years. People say conditions abroad aren’t easy either, but those are challenging in a fair way. This is just poor preparation,” he concluded.
As debates rage on, one thing’s clear: India may need to rethink their home pitch strategy if they want Test cricket to thrive.
