"Allegations about pitch doctoring is nothing new"- Ian Chappell slams Australian media after IND vs AUS 1st Test

Former Australia skipper Ian Chappell reckons the talk about the pitch for the first Test in Nagpur being 'doctored' had a psychological impact on Australia's performance. The visitors realized that there were no such exaggerated demons in the pitch, but until then it was too late as they lost the game by an innings and 132 runs.

Chappell shed light on the partnership between Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne on day one of the Test and felt it was enough to prove that Australia failed to post a good enough first-innings score.

In his column for ESPNCricinfo, here's what Ian Chappell wrote about the visitors' batting performance and the allegations made by the Australian media about the pitch:

"It was by no means impossible to play on, as Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith showed, but Australia failed to post a testing first-innings total. The media making allegations about pitch doctoring is nothing new. Players need to ignore this little game or else it has a debilitating effect on the visiting team. Not unexpectedly, it turned out to be nothing more than a fairly typical first-day Indian red-soil wicket."

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Ian Chappell feels Australian batters' technique has been exposed

India took a massive lead of 223 runs in their first innings and it looked like an uphill task for the Aussies right from the outset to save the game. However, the capitulation in the second innings was unexpected for many as they were bundled out for just 91, their lowest total in India.

Ian Chappell hopes that the talk about the pitch and their failure against Indian spinners hasn't caused mental scars in the minds of the Australians. He further wrote:

"The first Test has exposed Australia's weakness against good spin bowling on turning pitches. If they can ensure this setback doesn't mean their mental capacity to cope in India is not dented, it will keep them in the series. If they waver, they are in big trouble. Far too much emphasis is put on how pitches are going to play and on doctoring. It's worth remembering that both teams have to play on the same pitch."

It will be interesting to see the changes that the visitors make to their playing XI for the second Test in Delhi.

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