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Day 1 of the Cape Town Test between India and South Africa saw an alarming 23 wickets fall including two unbelievable collapses. There is often enough help for fast bowlers in South African conditions, but there has never been an instance of 23 wickets falling on the opening day of a Test in as many as 122 years.
South Africa were first bowled out for 55 in the opening session itself. India did get to 153/4 and looked like running away with the game. However, they lost six wickets in a space of just 11 balls with literally no runs added. The Proteas further lost three wickets in their second innings in a pretty eventful day's play.
The cricketing fraternity was surprised to see the pitch playing in the way that it did on just Day 1 of the Test match. Several former cricketers had their say on what transpired and here are some of the reactions:
#5 Sanjay Manjrekar
Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar feels that while there was enough help in the pitch, the lack of ability of modern-day batters to grind it out in the middle was also a reason why so many wickets fell.
Here's what he said on Star Sports:
"It's got a bit to do with the new-age batting that's maybe not focusing on defence as much, understandably because Test cricket has been the third format when it comes to priority. So if there's a bit of life in the pitch, then these things happen. It was almost like the bowlers were wearing a cape in Cape Town."
Manjrekar also shed light on how the entire bowling attack didn't hunt in packs. He feels Kagiso Rabada from South Africa and Mohammed Siraj from India did the bulk of the damage, proving the extravagant help in the pitch.
#4 Aakash Chopra
Aakash Chopra took a sly dig at the western media while questioning the Cape Town pitch. He pointed out how the media reacts when the Test matches end inside three days in India and questioned whether there will be anything said about the seaming wickets just like what was written about spin-friendly pitches.
Here's what the former opener said on his YouTube channel:
"Is the pitch bad? Should we talk about the pitch because no one does that? There is an outcry if the ball turns in India and 20 wickets fall in a day. The western media says that India keep winning on doctored pitches but if the same thing happens in South Africa, will anyone say anything or will they be tight-lipped?"
With the first Test ending inside three days and the second likely to end inside two, Chopra feels such pitches aren't a great advertisement for Test cricket.
#3 Dinesh Karthik
Dinesh Karthik, just like Chopra, spoke about how India is criticized for producing spin-friendly pitches when Tests like the ongoing one in Cape Town also end early. He believes that when there's so much help for the bowlers, luck plays a huge role in how long the batters can stay at the crease.
Here's what he told Cricbuzz:
"I think if people are complaining about spin pitches on how matches can tend to get over very quickly, it is the same with pitches that aid fast bowling as well. Very hard to play on. As you can see, 23 wickets fell in one day, and some of them were unplayable balls.
"The difference between playing on challenging pitches and playing on tough pitches is you need a bit of luck on tough pitches. This is one such pitch which is not purely skill-based, and you need a bit of luck sometimes."
Karthik expects the ICC to intervene and hand a demerit point to the Newlands pitch.
#2 Sunil Gavaskar
Legendary Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar in his time has scored a truckload of runs both home and away in difficult situations. He believes there was nothing wrong in the pitch and reckons it was all about lack of temperament and application from the batters.
However, he also expects no criticism if the visiting teams come to India and get bundled out on spin-friendly tracks. Here's what he said on Star Sports:
"This is what Test cricket is all about. You are going to be tested. You know there is a tendency amongst the SENA country's media, particularly if you think that you know, if you can't play on fast, bouncy pitches, you're not a batter. I'm sorry. You are not a batter if you can't play the turning pitch because over here for the bouncy pitch, there are two movements here."
Gavaskar stated that there were several ways to score runs on turning tracks and feels the batters should be adept to playing in all types of conditions.
#1 Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar is known for his sense of humor on social media and expressed his surprise at seeing so many wickets tumble on Day 1 of the Cape Town Test. He sarcastically asked if he missed something as he was on a flight.
Here's what the former Indian batter wrote on X:
"Cricket in ‘24 begins with 23 wickets falling in a single day. Unreal! Boarded a flight when South Africa was all out, and now that I'm home, the TV shows South Africa has lost 3 wickets. What did I miss?"
After an eventful first session on Day 2 where seven wickets fell, India need 79 runs to win the Cape Town Test and level the series.
