Under-fire Eden curator breaks silence, erupts at critics echoing Gautam Gambhir’s stance: ‘I did it as instructed’

India lost by 30 runs in Kolkata against South Africa after being bowled out for just 93 in their chase of 124 in the fourth innings.

Eden Gardens pitch curator Sujan Mukherjee broke his silence on Monday, mounting a strong defense amid the raging criticism over the Kolkata surface that saw the opening Test between India and South Africa end inside three days. India lost by 30 runs after being bowled out for just 93 in their chase of 124 in the fourth innings.

An Indian Cricket team member with pitch curator Sujan Mukherjee during the practice session ahead of the first Test match against South Africa, at Eden Gardens(Debajyoti Chakraborty)

The pitch came under scrutiny after 11 wickets fell on Day 1, and 15 more on the following day, with no team managing to score above 200 runs in a single innings, while only one batter notched up a half-century. While some called it "awful" and others called for the venue to be banned, Sujan, speaking to Times Now, echoed head coach Gautam Gambhir's words in saying that the pitch was not bad at all.

"This pitch is not bad at all," he said.

In fact, Sujan revealed what Gambhir had told the media on Sunday after the defeat, stating that he had prepared the pitch as instructed.

"I know everyone is questioning this pitch. Honestly, I know how to prepare a pitch for a Test. That's exactly what I did. I did it as instructed. I don't think about what others say. Not everyone knows everything. So I do my job with dedication, and I want to continue doing that in the future as well,” he added.

Earlier on Sunday, Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) president Sourav Ganguly sent out a message to Gautam Gambhir, urging him to take the pitch out of the equation and trust his fast bowlers to do the job.

"Yes, that is true — instructions were given, and I’ll just repeat what I said earlier. I am very fond of Gautam; he has done well for India in England, in ODIs, in T20 cricket. We will continue for a while, but we must play on good pitches," Ganguly told India Today in an interview.

"He must have faith in Bumrah, Siraj, and Shami. Spinners, who win Test matches for them. Win Test matches in five days, not three days,” Ganguly said.