‘That’s Bulls**t! No excuses’ – Ravi Shastri rubbishes ‘cheating’ claims over Nagpur pitch for first Test

India and Australia are going to face each other in the first match of the four-match Test series on Thursday, February 9 at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur. Meanwhile, the talk around Nagpur’s pitch gained momentum before the opening match of the series.

Many former Australian cricketers said controversial things about the pitch ahead of the match. They claimed that the pitch will assist spinners more than pacers. Many wanted the cricket governing body to intervene, while some have accused the curators of Pitch Doctoring. Meanwhile, the Former India head coach Ravi Shastri rubbishes the claims and said that there’s nothing wrong with the pitch.

“That’s bulls--t,”. It’s more hype than anything else surrounding this first Test match. It always happens, you get 15mm grass, 18mm grass or 12mm grass in different places around the ground … at the end of this first Test, I’m sure there’ll be someone who scores a hundred. If someone can get a hundred or 80+ on that pitch, they’ve played well and he will go and say, ‘What’s wrong with the pitch? You stay there, you apply yourself, your shot selection is good, you get runs’. But if you go out there and think you’re going to smash every ball, good luck to you.” Shastri told SEN Sporstday.

That’s what you expect in India: Ravi Shastri

Shastri said that both teams will play on the same surface so the advantages and disadvantages will be the same for both teams. He said that India never complained when they tour Australia. He even said that no one is going to get killed on that surface.

“If the ball is going to turn from there, so be it, So what? It’s home conditions, do what suits you, both teams have to play on the surface, and there’s a match referee who is the boss, it’s as simple as that. We never complained about pitches, in my career we never complained about a simple pitch. No excuses, just get on with it, at the end of three days no one’s going to get killed on that surface. The quality of the camera lenses is so good, they can make green grass look brown, that’s what you expect in India, come on.” Shastri said