After 'shortest' Test, skipper Rohit says India unfairly criticised for pitches

NEW DELHI: Skipper Rohit Sharma on Thursday pointed out that India receives undue criticism over pitches after his team's historic seven-wicket win in Cape Town against South Africa, suggesting there should be a review of how pitches are rated.
Amid seaming conditions and variable bounce on offer at Newlands, the match lasted just 642 balls (107 overs) -- becoming the shortest ever Test in the history of cricket.
With the match getting done and dusted inside five sessions, Rohit described the pitch as 'dangerous' but said he did had no problem as long as turning Indian tracks were accepted. Over the year's there has been a lot of criticism over pitches turning in India from Day 1.
"I don’t mind being on pitches like this as long as everyone keeps their mouth shut in India and no-one is talking about the pitches there," Rohit told reporters.

"Yes it is dangerous, but you come here (South Africa) to challenge yourself and you must face up to it."
Rohit believes there is inconsistency in the way match referees rate pitches in different countries.
"In India, when it turns on day one, people say ‘Oh, there is a puff of dust’. We need to stay neutral, especially match referees. I would love to see how the pitches are rated.
"I still can’t believe the (Cricket) World Cup final pitch (in Ahmedabad) was rated below standard. A player (Australia’s Travis Head) got a hundred there. They must rate pitches based on what they see, not based on countries."
Rohit added there should be no difference in the rating of a pitch based on spin or seam on day one.
"We know pitches in India will spin but people don’t like it because it turns from ball one. But if it seams from ball one, that is OK? That is not fair."
Rohit believes the nature of the wicket made their Cape Town win even more special.
"When we saw how the pitch played in the first session, we knew it would not be a high scoring game," he said. "All we wanted to do was stay disciplined in how we bowled and not get ahead of ourselves.
"We also spoke to the batters and said we needed small contributions in the game. Apply yourself, if you get hit on the body it’s fine."
(With inputs from Reuters)