Mukherjee has laid out a hard strip with a reasonable covering of grass for the final Test beginning on Sunday, not exactly what India would have hoped for going into a match they must win to retain their number one world ranking.
“Personally, I believe a lot of emphasis is being given on creating sporting wickets,” Dhoni said on Saturday afternoon.
“It is not written in a book that a sporting wicket must have grass or there should be bounce for the fast bowlers. A sporting wicket is one where there is something for the bowlers and something for the batsmen too at the same time.
A turning track it is challenging, too. Every country has its specialisation. When you go to South Africa, you can see bounce and seam movement; when you go to England, there is plenty of swing it’s the same with New Zealand. We are special because the ball turns and there is bounce for the spinners.”
Dhoni didn’t outright rule out three seamers. “There is a bit of grass, so I think the seamers will get a bit of help. There are no stands on one side of the ground, you will some breeze going across the field and there will be help for the seamers. The pitch looks quite hard, we will have to see how wear and tear affects it. I don’t see much turn happening on the first two days.”
Asked if he w
as worried that South Africa had outplayed India in Nagpur in conditions more suited to the home team, the Indian skipper replied, “The toss was really important on that wicket. As the game progressed, the wicket got slower and lower, it got better for bowlers to get reverse swing going, not to forget the spinning option. Had we batted first and got off to a good start, the game might have got over much before it did.”
Welcoming the challenge of being in a must-win situation, Dhoni went on, “This is the main side of life because that is what makes life interesting. We are looking forward to coming back in the series and doing well but if it was so easy, it would not be called international cricket. We are expecting our players who are part of the side right now to try and level the series.”