NEW DELHI: The former chief curator of the BCCI
Daljit Singh
has expressed his astonishment at the substandard quality of the
drop-in pitches
being utilized for the
T20 World Cup
matches in New York, particularly those involving the Indian team.
The Indian team is scheduled to play three World Cup matches in New York, which includes the highly anticipated encounter against Pakistan on June 9.
During their opening match against Ireland, the pitch drew significant attention due to its uneven bounce and the presence of cracks on the surface.
The uneven nature of the pitch even led to a concerning incident involving India's captain,
Rohit Sharma
, who was compelled to leave the field after being struck by a delivery from Josh Little that unexpectedly rose from a good length.
This incident has raised serious questions about the safety and well-being of the players participating in the tournament.
"It is a poor pitch. Drop-in pitch needs to be installed well in advance. To create density, you need to play on it and use different rollers and then increase the density," Daljit, who worked with the BCCI for more than two decades, told PTI.
"It seems they just installed it without doing any of that, poor quality and preparation I would say," he said.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) had shipped 10 drop-in pitches, manufactured in Australia, to New York during the initial days of May. Damian Hough, the curator of Adelaide Oval, was responsible for the preparation of all 10 wickets.
Out of the total, four wickets were designated for the main square, while the remaining six were intended to be used as practice wickets.
"Installation of the pitches should have been done three months ago. The they had to increase the density with heavy rolling, light rolling, cross rolling and diagonal rolling.
"Then take a break for a few days and then repeat the same for increasing the density. it doesn't look good. There is uneven bounce, this is not an ideal pitch for T20s.
"More time should have been given to mature the pitch. It is not mature enough for the World Cup," said Daljit, also a former first-class cricketer.
The process of setting up the temporary venue in New York began at the start of the year, in January. Given the challenging weather conditions during the winter season in that region, the task of laying down the playing surfaces well ahead of time would have posed significant difficulties for those responsible for organizing the event.
Asked how he expects the wicket to play on June 9, Daljit added: "I don't how it will play there, India-Pakistan is a big game. I am certainly not okay with what I have seen so far."
The outfield too is on the slower side but Daljit doesn't find anything wrong with that.
"The outfield seems to be okay but the pitch is where the main problem is."
On May 1, the ICC had informed that 10 drop-in pitches were being prepared in Florida since late December, employing proprietary techniques honed over a decade at the Adelaide Oval.
They were later transported to New York by road via a convoy of more than 20 semi-trailer trucks.
English (US) ·