"Why do we need a pitch like this?" - Aakash Chopra criticizes the surface prepared for the 2nd Ind vs SL Test

Aakash Chopra has questioned the purpose of preparing a crumbling pitch for the ongoing second Test between Team India and Sri Lanka.

The M. Chinnaswamy Stadium pitch showed its colors right from the first over of the Test match. Sixteen wickets fell on the first day, with Sri Lanka reduced to a score of 86/6 after they had bowled out Team India for 252 runs.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra was extremely critical of the pitch. He said:

"Why do we need a pitch like this? In the first over itself, the soil flies. The match is not going anywhere if the soil is flying in the first over of the first day, it is not going to the fourth or the fifth day."

The former India cricketer highlighted that such pitches have almost become the norm. Aakash Chopra observed:

"That's exactly what has happened here. From the first ball of the first day itself, it was known that this match will be over in a jiffy. But why such a pitch and this is happening regularly."

Aakash Chopra gave examples of recent Test matches that were played on similar pitches in India and pointed out:

"Last time you played a pink-ball Test, the match was over in a jiffy. It was a crumbling pitch in the second Test in Chennai as well, the ball spun a lot. I remember the Pune match and the matches against South Africa in Nagpur and Mohali. If we are going to prepare such pitches on a regular basis, then that's not a good thing."

The raging turners on which Team India have played at home have contributed to the host batters' struggles in recent times. The indifferent form of Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara was accentuated by bowler-friendly pitches during the home Tests.

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"Skills should be important" - Aakash Chopra says luck is a bigger factor on such surfaces

The uneven bounce played a significant role in some of the batters' dismissals [P/C: BCCI]

Aakash Chopra highlighted that bowlers should not get wickets just by firing the ball in. He said:

"There is no contest. Skills should be important, you should get wickets only if you are a good left-arm spinner. If we just hit the ball with speed on the pitch and it jumps or stays low, what's the point."

The 44-year-old concluded by saying that the Bengaluru pitch deserves as much criticism as the docile surface in the first Test between Pakistan and Australia. Aakash Chopra elaborated:

"We were saying the Rawalpindi pitch was a bad one, it was a road. I will say this pitch is also bad because the batter is dependent more on luck than skills. Of course, Shreyas Iyer has told us a different story."

Shreyas Iyer was the only batter to breach the 50-run mark on the opening day of the Bengaluru Test. He was distinctly unlucky to fall short of his second Test century by just eight runs.