# Gavaskar slams ‘hypocrisy’ over Australia vs Bangladesh Test pitch 2026-08-26T05:16:28+00:00 | Sports | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Sunil Gavaskar has lashed out at the Mackay pitch used for the second Test between Australia and Bangladesh, calling the surface unfit and accusing cricket administrators of hypocrisy. The legendary opener said that if an Indian Test match had ended inside two days, it would have drawn widespread condemnation from the global cricket establishment. The match saw Bangladesh bowled out for 74 in the first innings and 95 in the second, with Australia reaching the target of 86 with six wickets in hand to win inside two days. Gavaskar contrasted the silence over the Mackay track with the criticism Indian pitches routinely face when matches finish early, arguing that the same standards are not applied universally. The former India captain's remarks add to the debate over pitch standards across countries. The International Cricket Council will assess the surface and issue a rating in due course. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The ICC pitch-rating system assigns demerit points for poor surfaces, and three demerits trigger a one-year ban from hosting international cricket. Since 2018, only two Indian venues, the Holkar Stadium in Indore and the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur, have been rated 'poor' by the International Cricket Council. Gavaskar's outburst revives the long-running debate over double standards in pitch criticism, where subcontinental wickets are routinely labelled dustbowls while bouncy Australian tracks escape similar scrutiny. The match referee will file a rating report, and its public release will show whether the ICC holds all venues to the same standard. ## Coverage - sports.ndtv.com led with Gavaskar's criticism and the hypocrisy charge, framing the pitch story as an accountability issue for Australian grounds This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Australia, Bangladesh, International Cricket Council, Mackay, Sunil Gavaskar Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/gavaskar-slams-hypocrisy-over-australia-vs-bangladesh-test-pitch/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/gavaskar-slams-hypocrisy-over-australia-vs-bangladesh-test-pitch/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/