‘You don’t need a turn lane’: Sunil Gavaskar decodes Manav Suthar’s six-wicket haul vs Afghanistan

Manav Suthar and Sunil Gavaskar NEW DELHI: India completely dominated the lone Test against Afghanistan on Day 3, bowling the visitors out for 152 and forcing a follow-on. The star of the day was debutant Manav Suthar who produced a stunning six-wicket haul to dismantle Afghanistan’s batting line-up and put the hosts in a commanding position.Speaking on JioStar’s ‘Cricket Live’, Sunil Gavaskar praised the skill and accuracy of the young left-arm spinner and dismissed the notion that Indian spinners are only successful because of spin-friendly pitches. “People say that a spin bowler is successful in India because the pitch helps him, the conditions are good for him. But I would say, here against Afghanistan, take the pitch out of the equation. Bowling is all about skill and control. And that’s exactly what this young man showed,” he said.Gavaskar highlighted Suthar’s consistency and ability to trouble batsmen with flight, dip and accuracy rather than over-spin, adding: “When you have drift and can consistently land the ball in the right place, you don’t need a spin track to get wickets.”READ ALSO: ‘Rajasthan ka Jadeja’: The making of Manav Suthar, India’s latest left-arm spin hopeHe added that Suthar’s success was the result of hard work and smart planning, saying, “He wasn’t just lucky, he was smart and precise.”The 23-year-old Rajasthan all-rounder returned figures of 6 for 33 in 22 overs to become only the 10th Indian bowler and seventh Indian spinner to take five wickets on Test debut. His performance is now the second best by an Indian on Test debut, behind Narendra Hirwani’s famous 8 for 61 against the West Indies in 1988.READ ALSO: IND vs AFG | On his debut, Manav Suthar is scripting history and registering the best bowling figures in 38 yearsAfter Afghanistan resumed at 113 for 5, Suthar tore through the lower order and removed key batsmen including top scorer Rahmat Shah (60). Afghanistan were eventually bowled out in 58.4 overs, giving India a massive first innings lead of 412 runs.Suthar’s dream debut capped off years of strong domestic performances, taking 129 wickets in 29 first-class matches and consistently impressing with both bat and ball, earning him a long-awaited national call-up.