“No rank turner…”- Former India skipper reflects on Eden Gardens’ surface ahead of IND vs SA 1st Testd Draft

subhradeep-choudhury — Tue, 11 Nov 2025 14:26:59 GMT

No rank turner request from India's Shubman Gill and Gautam Gambhir for Eden Gardens' Test

Since India was whitewashed against New Zealand in the three-match Test series last year, the home side has been cautious of the surface they have been producing for different opponents. In the previous series against the West Indies, they put up a green surface for the opener in Ahmedabad, while in the second clash, they used a slow surface at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.

Heading into the new series against South Africa for the opening game at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, the focus has been immensely on the surface. The ground is known for its assistance to the fast bowlers, who get nip and seam movement in the first hour of the morning. The new CAB secretary, Sourav Ganguly, has dropped a massive statement on the 22-yard.

“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.” Ganguly expressed, as quoted by the PTI news agency. The spinners have historically struggled at this venue.

Sourav Ganguly reveals India’s no request for rank turner for IND vs SA Kolkata Test

Despite not being watered for nearly a week before the start of the Test, CAB’s curator, Sujan Mukherjee, revealed that head coach Gautam Gambhir was happy to see the wicket during the inspection. He further noted that when the coach asked him about the turn of the 22-yard, he indicated that it could appear from the third day of the clash.

“It’s going to be a good sporting wicket with help for both batters and bowlers. There will be assistance on offer for the spinners as well, and that can happen early as well.” Mujherjee, who brought black soil and a different type of grass to convert it to a pacy and bouncy turf in recent times, addressed.

Ganguly also shed light on the encouraging ticket sales for the first three days of the Test matches as he stated, “Thirty-four thousand priced tickets have been sold out as we expect a good turnout.” It will be the first Test at this ground in six years since the day-night affair against Bangladesh.