"Would be doing ourselves a disservice" - England batting coach refuses to blame Ahmedabad pitch for defeat
England batting coach Jonathan Trott doesn't want to blame the Ahmedabad pitch for his team's loss in the 3rd Test against India. Albeit labeling the wicket 'tricky', Trott admitted that the conditions were the same for both sides and England could have batted better in the first innings.
The Ahmedabad Test concluded within two days, becoming the quickest resulted Test since 1934. Contrary to the expectations, spinners dominated with the pink ball from the first session itself.
While R Ashwin and Joe Root extracted sharp turn, Axar Patel and Jack Leach outfoxed the batters by making the ball skid through the same spots in the surface. The pitch has received a lot of flak in the past few days, especially from the England cricket fraternity.
However, speaking at a virtual press conference, Jonathan Trott focussed on improvement rather than playing the blame game.
"I thought it was tricky at times for everybody to play on, obviously pretty dry and that's what we have seen here in India. We had first use for it, so we would have like to score more runs and put India under a bit of pressure. We saw when we bowled well, we could restrict them too.
"I always like to see what we could have done better instead of blame things. If we could have got 200 or 250 in the first innings, it would have been a different game. The mentality (mental approach) of batting in the second innings would have been very different. So looking and blaming the pitch, I think, would be doing ourselves a disservice. Yes, the ball did spin and there were balls which skid on but it was the same for both sides," said Trott.
Some former England players have called upon the International Cricket Council (ICC) to look into the controversial matter. On their part, Indian experts and players have hit back by pointing to early finishes on green tops and seam-friendly conditions overseas.
"England players are hurting in the dressing room" - Jonathan Trott
Trott further remarked that England players are hurting in the dressing room but are now focussed solely on the upcoming challenges.
"It is important that one does not become too desperate. You feel for the lads, nobody sees them work harder than the coaches do. They are hurting in the dressing room. ...We are disappointed with the way we played, but it's done and the focus on the next match. I don't think anyone is feeling sorry for themselves. Lot of guys want to do well, relishing the challenges of next week," Trott, who played 52 Tests for England, mentioned.
The 4th Test will begin on Thursday, March 4.