India has been accused of “straight-up pitch doctoring” as Australia eyes a major selection gamble in the form of uncapped off-spinner Todd Murphy.
Rumours are swirling Murphy’s father is making his way to Nagpur to witness his son’s Test debut as the tourists sort out their side for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series opener.
News Corp reported the 22-year-old has been placed “on alert he is very much in the mix to play”. If he partners Nathan Lyon it would be the first time Australia has played two off-spinners in a Test side since the 1988 tour of Pakistan.
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It comes as Australia is left disadvantage by a blatant tactic that should have the ICC asking questions, according to former Test cricketer Simon O’Donnell.
Journalists captured Indian groundstaff watering the centre of the pitch and the off-side for right-handers, but left the leg-side dry and only rolled the centre of the wicket.
With Australia expected to play as many as five left-handed batters – David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Travis Head, Alex Carey and Matt Renshaw – it’s a move that would clearly favour an Indian line-up with likely just two lefties batting lower in the order.
“The ICC should step in and do something about it, if they think it’s not right,” O’Donnell said on SEN Breakfast.
“If they think the pitch is not right, there’ll be an ICC referee at the game and the ICC will be watching this game.
“But there’s so many when it comes to India, we have all of these discussions, and nothing seems to happen.
“If they really think there’s a pitch here that doesn’t play to the normal standards of Test cricket and the characteristics of this ground, then the ICC need to do something.”
Veteran sportswriter Robert Craddock was also critical.
“The classic saying about pitches is, ‘Oh, it’s the same for everyone’,” he said on SEN’s Whateley.
“When the Gabba pitch too much grass was left on it, people were saying, ‘Yes, it was not a great wicket, but it was the same everyone’.
“But you can’t say that about this pitch, Australia has six left-handers in their top eight, so if you start multi-preparing parts of the deck that’s straight-up pitch doctoring, it’s poor.
“90 per cent of me feels frustrated about it, but the other 10 per cent is it’s a narrative for the series, it’s just building up beautifully, isn’t it?
“It’s a bit of old-fashioned hijinks, Test cricket needs these plots and the drama side of me enjoys it.”
Meanwhile Steve Smith declared Cameron Green was “unlikely to play” as he navigated his return from a broken finger, opening the door for either Peter Handscomb or Matt Renshaw to take that middle-order slot.
Handscomb, who is a right-handed batter and renowned for his work against spin, could leapfrog left-handed Renshaw given the abundance of lefties in the Australian line-up.
But while the pitch looks set to be dry and take turn, it’s not a totally unexpected occurrence for the Aussies who have been plotting their path to success against spin for some time.
Smith, the only batter in the squad with a Test century in India, declared it was all about being proactive, not dictated too, and that wouldn’t change even after his first look at the pitch.
“The guys have been working a lot on their plans and their methods when the pitch is flat and when it has been spinning,” Smith said.
“If it is spinning from ball one you have to be proactive, looking to score runs because one will have your name on it if you sit back and defend.
“So having a plan straight up is important.”
The Australians have been using spinners in training who replicate the likes of Ravi Ashwin and the Indian left-armers as part of that planning.
“We’re not overthinking things,” Smith said.
“Hopefully, we have the tools in the kitbag to handle them.”
Indian captain KL Rahul said his side was preparing to bat on spinning pitches.
“The things that we’ve worked on obviously is playing spin. We know how pitches are going to be here in India and what to expect,” he said.
The obvious nature of the local curator’s work on the pitch came after former Indian coach
Ravi Shastri declared he wanted all pitches in the four-Test series to “turn from day one” to ram home the home team’s spin advantage.
It’s something Australian captain Pat Cummins and his squad should have known was coming but not something they’re likely to let rattle them.
In the recently released second season of “The Test” documentary, Cummins revealed his approach to combating challenging conditions was not to get upset by them.
“You can’t kick up a stink that this isn’t a lovely flat wicket like you might get at the SCG,” Cummins said.
“You’ve got to embrace it. You’ve got to be really proactive straightaway. You’ve got to have a really, really clear game plan, and literally from ball one, you’ve got to back that in.”
Australian keeper Alex Carey also said it was crucial to keep an open mind and just play whatever comes.
“I think the open-mindedness of what we’re going to come up against, what team they’re going to put on the park and what scenario I’m going to come in at.
“Try to plan and prepare the best we can and then once we‘re in the middle, it’s enjoy the contest, be patient with all the things that come into your head and then hope for the best.”
