The Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow, India recently made headlines for the wrong reasons. The curator of the stadium was removed from his job following the preparation of a slow and turning pitch for the second T20I between India and New Zealand.
The match, played on January 26th, saw India’s spinners dominate the New Zealand batsmen on a pitch that was heavily criticized for being too slow and offering excessive turns. This resulted in a low-scoring match, with India winning by 6 wickets with just 1 ball to spare chasing the target of 100 in 20 overs. Almost 30 overs were bowled by spinners and no sixes were hit in both innings.
However, the decision to prepare such a pitch sparked controversy and led to widespread criticism from fans, players, and experts. Some accused the curator of attempting to favour the home team by preparing a pitch that would give their spin bowlers an advantage.
In response to the backlash, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) launched an investigation into the matter and found that the pitch was indeed not up to the standard expected for international cricket. The BCCI then took the decision to remove the curator from his position.
This incident highlights the importance of maintaining the integrity and quality of pitches in international cricket. Pitches play a crucial role in shaping the outcome of a match and should be prepared to provide a fair and balanced contest between the two teams.
“The curator has been removed and replaced by Sanjeev Kumar Agarwal who is a very experienced curator,” a UPCA source was quoted as saying by PTI. "We will turn things around in a month.
“A lot of domestic cricket was already played on all the centre wickets ahead of the T20I and the curator should have left one or two strips for an international game. The surface was overused and due to the bad weather, there was not enough (time) to prepare a fresh wicket.”
With the T20I series level at 1-1, India and New Zealand play the decider in Ahmedabad today. Who will win this match and seal the series?
- India
- New Zealand
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