The Eden Gardens Test was supposed to be India’s statement of intent to begin a marquee home series. Instead, it has triggered the most intense pitch debate Indian cricket has seen in years. A 30-run defeat to South Africa inside three days, on a surface that both turned early and seamed extravagantly, has brought two of Indian cricket’s most influential voices into an unexpected public face-off: Sourav Ganguly and Gautam Gambhir. In an exclusive interview to NDTV, Ganguly — former India captain, former BCCI President, and the man synonymous with Eden Gardens — offered a pointed critique of the team management’s pitch philosophy under head coach Gambhir. And he didn’t mince words.
“Play on good wickets. I hope Gautam Gambhir is listening,” Ganguly said, leaning in as if delivering a message to a successor. “I have got a lot of time for him. A lot of regard. He is a competitor. He has done well for India as a coach. But he must play on good wickets. Because he has got Bumrah, he has got Siraj, he has got Shami, he has got Kuldeep, he has got Jadeja.”
Ganguly’s argument was straightforward: with a world-class bowling arsenal, India should not need doctored turners or overly responsive surfaces to script home dominance.
#NDTVExclusive | Former India captain Sourav Ganguly reflects on India’s defeat in the first Test against South Africa and suggests what the team needs to do to turn things around.@SGanguly99 | @cheerica | #INDvsSA pic.twitter.com/Yv5fiWhGzI
— NDTV (@ndtv) November 16, 2025
“He needs to take the wicket out of the game. Because if his batsmen are not putting up 350–400, he will not win Test matches. That’s the reason they won in England — because his batsmen put runs up on the board.”
Then came the line that will echo through Indian cricket’s corridors this week:
“He must play on good wickets. And trust his people. And win Test matches in 5 days. Not in 3 days.”
THE INSIDE STORY: WHAT INDIA ASKED FOR
Sources told NDTV that the Eden surface wasn’t the curator’s independent call. Instead, the CAB team reportedly provided exactly the kind of wicket Gambhir and the Indian management requested — an instruction that leaned towards assisting turn early.
This is significant because the match narrative has unexpectedly turned into a referendum on Gambhir’s pitch approach — one that many believe is shaped by criticism India faced earlier this year when the Delhi Test against West Indies stretched all five days. Ironically, India won that match.
GAMBHIR HITS BACK — “THIS IS WHAT WE ASKED FOR”
Gambhir did not shy away from ownership.
“The majority of wickets went to the seamers,” he reminded when asked whether the pitch was too spin-friendly. “You should be able to know how to play turn. And this is what we asked for, and this is what we got. I thought the curator was very supportive.”
It is vintage Gambhir — unapologetically direct, fiercely protective of his methods, and adamant that India’s batting must adapt rather than rely on benign surfaces.
A BIGGER PHILOSOPHICAL DIVIDE
At its core, this is less about Eden Gardens and more about two competing cricketing ideologies.
Ganguly, the architect of India’s fearlessness abroad, believes in trusting elite fast bowlers and stretching Tests deep into the fifth day — a template that has propelled India to two WTC finals.
Gambhir, newer to the job, is more willing to shape conditions to India’s strengths, especially spin, even at the cost of shortening Tests.