India vs South Africa: Will Kolkata Test sport rank turner?
What's the story
Ahead of the first Test between hosts India and South Africa, former India captain and Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president Sourav Ganguly has confirmed that Team India didn't ask for a turning track. The match will be played at Eden Gardens in Kolkata from November 14. While India are coming off a 2-0 series win over West Indies, the Proteas have not won a Test in India in 15 years.
Pitch details
'Well, they haven't asked for it yet...': Ganguly
Ahead of the series opener, Ganguly said, "Well, they haven't asked for it (rank turner) yet. So, I won't be able to answer the question. It looks like a very good one." The Eden Gardens pitch has been slow of late. It has offered little assistance to fast bowlers in two Ranji Trophy matches this season. According to The Indian Express, CAB curator Sujan Mukherjee was satisfied with its state.
Pitch balance
Spinners could come into play from Day 3
Mukherjee revealed that Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir was "happy to see the wicket" during his inspection. He also said that spinners will be in action from Day 3. "It's going to be a good sporting wicket with help for both batters and bowlers," Mukherjee said, adding that assistance for spinners could come early depending on weather conditions and wear.
Squads
A look at two squads
India: Shubman Gill (captain), Rishabh Pant (vice-captain and wicket-keeper), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, and Akash Deep. SA: Temba Bavuma (captain), Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Tony de Zorzi, Zubayr Hamza, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, and Kyle Verreynne.