During the post-match press conference after the second Test against South Africa, India's captain Rohit Sharma expressed his indifference towards playing on challenging pitches like that of Cape Town. However, he also pointedly addressed the criticism often directed at pitches in India. Sharma emphasised that as long as other teams refrain from commenting on Indian pitches, he has no issues with playing on pitches like the one in Cape Town.
Sharma's comments were also in response to the International Cricket Council's (ICC) assessment of the pitch used for the ODI World Cup Final as "below average." He argued against this rating, citing the instance of Travis Head scoring a century in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. According to Sharma, a pitch that allows a century cannot be deemed below average.
"I don't mind playing on pitches like this as long as everyone keeps their mouth shut in India and doesn’t complain about Indian pitches. You come here to challenge yourself. And when people come to India it is challenging as well," Sharma said at the post-match press conference.
"I still can’t believe that the World Cup final was rated below average. A batter got a hundred. How can that be a poor pitch?" he further added.
In a display of exceptional cricket, India secured a historic seven-wicket win at Newlands, Cape Town, marking a milestone as he became the first Asian captain to secure a Test win at this venue. The triumph unfolded over five eventful sessions, with the pitch presenting a significant challenge to the batters.
The match was particularly notable for Dean Elgar's farewell Test. Amidst the challenging conditions, only South Africa's Aiden Markram managed to master the pitch, scoring a rapid century off just 99 balls. Despite Markram's commendable effort, his century ultimately proved insufficient against India's determined chase.
India successfully pursued the modest target of 79 runs in just 12 overs, concluding the match with seven wickets still in hand. This achievement not only underscored the team's batting prowess but also set a new record in the annals of Test cricket.
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