Courtesy: BCCI/X
On day one of the first Test match between India and Bangladesh, the pitch at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, came into sharp focus on social media platform X after the hosts lost a few early wickets to the pacers. After deciding to field first, Bangladesh fast bowlers managed to get a lot of assistance from the pitch, and it allowed Hasan Mahmud to dismiss three of the star Indian batters, namely Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, and Virat Kohli for single-digit scores.
Notably, there was a lot of pace and bounce in the red soil pitch produced by the curators of the MA Chidambaram Stadium for the first Test between India and Bangladesh. Due to the overcast conditions and some moisture on the first morning in Chennai, the ball also swung and seamed around, making it difficult for the Indian batters to negotiate the likes of Hasan Mahmud, Nahid Rana, and Taskin Ahmed, with the former causing majority of the damage.
Ashwin and Jadeja built unbeaten 195-run stand for sixth wicket as Chennai pitch started to ease out
After losing three wickets early in the first session, Yashasvi Jaiswal, who brought up fifty, and Rishabh Pant, stitched together a 62-run stand for the fourth wicket, to bring India back into the contest. Following a few more quick wickets, the Indians were reduced to 144/6 before Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin got together to take the attack to the opposition, as the pitch started to ease out a touch in the afternoon sun during the second session.
Below are some of the fan reactions on the pitch at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, providing assistance to the fast bowlers on day one of the first Test:
As the play on day one progressed, the partnership between Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin started to reach new heights, allowing India to dictate terms to Bangladesh in the third and final session. Ashwin went on to reach his sixth hundred in Test cricket, staying unbeaten on 102 runs in just 112 balls, while Jadeja was not out on 86 off 117 balls at the other end, propelling India’s first innings total to 339/6 at stumps.
