NEW DELHI: Assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said on Saturday that the Barsapara Stadium pitch suits India’s current style of play, but emphasized that the outcome of a Test is ultimately decided by the team’s quality, not the surface.

He described the first-day track as slightly challenging for scoring, with several of South Africa’s top-order batters failing to capitalize on their starts. The visitors finished day one at 247 for six after choosing to bat.

“My personal point of view is that the wicket very rarely determines who wins the game. If we’d played better in Kolkata, I feel we could have won the Test on that surface,” Ten Doeschate said at the end of the opening day’s play.

Tristan Stubbs admits Kuldeep Yadav beat him with first ball of new spell

“But having said that, you’ve got to introspect and look at recent results. These sort of wickets maybe do suit us a little bit better.”

India’s decision to play two fast bowlers, one pace-bowling all-rounder, and three spinners is a strategy well-suited to the conditions at this venue.

“The template for us is probably closer to this, than playing on some of the wickets we have played on. You’ve got to be prepared to fight really hard and this game is going to go deep. Make sure you stay in the game.”

Known for his candid opinions, Ten Doeschate didn’t hesitate to say that the pitch at Guwahati Stadium is far superior to the one in Kolkata.

“I thought it’s a massive contrast from the Kolkata pitch, for one thing. We were expecting a better wicket. I thought it was pretty lifeless.”

“…..but I’ve just heard Tristan Stubbs say that it was quite hard to score as well. I think it was just good old-fashioned attritional Test cricket.”

Doeschate believes that the drift of the game could be gauged once both teams have completed their first essays as it will get difficult to bat in the third and fourth innings.

“Real hard toil and first-innings runs are going to be very important.

And then hopefully a little bit late in the Test it becomes a bit tougher to bat on. ,

Overspin and pace off red soil track works for Kuldeep

Kuldeep Yadav was fantastic on the day with three wickets, all of which exhibited his mastery over craft. The drift, dip, turn and bounce was on display.

“We know Kuldeep’s strike rate is phenomenal. But maybe the fact that he sort of gets overspin and with the red soil and a little bit more pace in the wicket, maybe he was slightly more effective in the conditions today,” Ten Doeschate said, explaining the reason for left-arm wrist-spinner’s success when the pitch didn’t offer much.

But he is confident that as the match progresses, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar, the two finger spinners, will also come into play.

“And like I said, I think later on, the finger spinners are going to come into it. But certainly in terms of strategy and how we wanted to set up the first day, it’s a real bonus for him (Kuldeep) to pick up three wickets and get us a foothold in the game.”

Hope the wicket stays same during Indian first innings too

The former Dutch captain and KKR all-rounder felt that there hasn’t been much wear and tear after day one and wanted to believe that even India will bat their first innings on a strip which allows them to make most of it before it eventually breaks.

“We just went to have a look at the pitch now. There’s some foot marks and some tiny ball marks, but nothing to suggest it’s dry or cracking at the top. So fingers crossed that it lasts and plays well for the next few days.”

(With PTI Inputs)