New Delhi, Oct 14 (IANS) India head coach Gautam Gambhir has said that there could have been a better pitch on offer at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, the venue for their seven-wicket win over the West Indies to complete a 2-0 series sweep.

Gambhir also urged for pitches to be made which offer assistance to fast bowlers and carry through to the keeper, especially with India boasting a quality pace attack in Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, alongside Prasidh Krishna and Akash Deep being next in line.

The current Indian team management signalled a shift toward more balanced surfaces, a move further prompted by last year’s 3-0 whitewash at the hands of New Zealand on rank turners. The revised strategy in terms of pitches paid immediate dividends in Ahmedabad, where India wrapped up the first Test inside three days with a win coming by an innings and 140 runs. But the game in New Delhi proved to be demanding.

Despite being on course for a 2-0 series sweep, India’s bowlers were made to toil for nearly 200 overs without a break after enforcing the follow-on on a docile black soil pitch, exposing the physical toll such surfaces can have on the team. While, fast bowlers found some reverse swing and struck with the new ball, spinners had to rely on patience and variation to pick 13 wickets collectively.

“I thought that we could have had a better wicket here. I think for me, yes we did get the result on day 5, but again, I think nicks need to carry. I think there has to be something for the fast bowlers as well. I know we keep talking about spinners playing an important role, but when you have got probably two quality fast bowlers in your ranks, you still want them to be in the game as well.

“It is okay, there is not enough, but there has to be carry. So where we all saw, I thought the carry wasn’t there, which was a bit alarming. I think going forward, we can get better wickets in Test Cricket because all of us have the responsibility of keeping Test cricket alive. I think the first and foremost thing to keep Test cricket alive is playing on good surfaces,” said Gambhir in the post-match press conference.

While India’s bowlers claimed all 40 West Indies wickets across two Tests, it also sets up the premise for how pitches in the upcoming home series against South Africa would be in the next month. With the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore having significant turn and variable bounce in the ongoing Pakistan-South Africa Test, India’s choice of surfaces could prove decisive against a strong Proteas’ batting line-up.

Gambhir went on to praise West Indies’ fightback in the second Test, particularly their second-innings resistance, where John Campbell and Shai Hope made centuries, while Justin Greaves and Jayden Seales had a 79-run last wicket stand.

“100 percent – I have always believed this, that world cricket needs West Indian cricket. That is something which is very important. It was very nice to see them fight. Obviously, they are an inexperienced team and there are a lot of changes that have happened there. But the way they fought in the second innings obviously will give them a lot of confidence,” he said.

Gambhir also defended the decision to play seam-bowling allrounder Nitish Reddy, despite limited bowling opportunities, stressing the importance of grooming a young player like him with rare skillsets in home conditions.

“Look, for me, I think it is not important that how many overs he has bowled. It is important that he is gaining experience at home as well. Sometimes you learn a lot just by playing a game of cricket as well. It is a Test match, and we don’t want to use a 23-year-old boy just on tough tours away from home – that is not going to be fair on him that we decide to play him only in overseas tour – be it Australia, South Africa, New Zealand, England.

“I think when he has done well overseas, he deserves a go in home conditions as well. Wherever we can get the opportunity to put him in Indian conditions, we will continue to do that because it is important for us to groom someone like Nitish and also because you know that there are not many seam bowling all around.

“We have spoken for decades and decades about seam bowling all around us. So, whenever we get that opportunity, we will keep grooming him. It depends on the captain, conditions as well and how many overs he bowls. But again, I think by seeing Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Siraj bowling at home will be a great experience for him,” he elaborated.

With no red-ball cricket scheduled for the next eight months before the away series in Sri Lanka, the upcoming Tests against South Africa, the current World Test Championship winners, will be a key benchmark for India’s Test side in transition mode. Gambhir acknowledged the need to give young players a longer rope when they come into the team set-up once the senior players have moved on.

“First and foremost, you look at talent, work ethics, you look at the characters in their dressing room, especially in red ball cricket. You look at what they bring on the table. Apart from the amount of runs and wickets they do, I think how hungry they are, and if you got all those attributes, you will definitely have a successful Test career. More importantly, as a team, we will have a successful run as well.

“So for me, I think giving them a longer run is very, very important because as we all know that international cricket is a very insecure environment because only 15 players can go on to represent the country and there are so many people waiting for their opportunity.

“So make sure first you pick the right character and then if you see that, try and give them a longer run so that they themselves should be content and happy that they got a longer run rather than just chopping and changing as well. Sometimes it’s difficult as a head coach and a team management where you will have to sometimes leave out players.

“I don’t like using this word, dropping players because you don’t drop players, you only select players. More importantly, when you leave out a player, as a head coach, I should be emotional about it rather than just being very ruthless. I feel emotional when I leave out any of the guys not being part of the playing eleven or not being part of the squad.

“So for me, I think that is something which is exceptionally important and these guys have done their bit, especially on an England tour, the kind of work ethic they had shown. For me, I think that was a huge takeaway, not only from my coaching point of view, but from this group’s point of view as well,” he concluded.

–IANS

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