ISLAMABAD: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry expressed his disappointment over the “dead” pitch prepared for the first test match of historic Pakistan-Australia cricket series.
In a tweet, he said “Extremely disappointed on PCB choosing a dead wicket for an historic test match.” He added that “with such a furious Pak pace attack why would we need such dead pitches”.
Expressing his annoyance over a pitch also termed “benign” by the Australian players, the minister said test match was held after 24 years but the track was pathetic. He hoped that the PCB would give positive cricket a chance in next matches.
Cricket fans were disappointed as Australia’s first Test in Pakistan for nearly a quarter of a century ended in a draw at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. Pakistan had made 476-4 before declaring their first innings after opting to bat on run-filled surface.
A total of 1,187 runs were scored over five days and only 14 wickets fell in what Australia’s Steve Smith called a “pretty benign, dead wicket” which risks censure from the game’s governing body.
READ MORE: Pakistan, Australia first Test ends in a draw
The pitch at the Pindi Cricket Stadium in Rawalpindi is under the scanner after only yielding 11 wickets across four days of play. According to reports, the venue could be rated as poor by the match referee Ranjan Madugalle.
If the pitch is rated poor by the match referee upon the culmination of the match, Rawalpindi will be handed three demerit points. If a venue gets five demerit points across a span of five years, it will be banned from hosting any international cricket for a period of twelve months.
According to ICC guidelines, seam, spin, and bounce at different stages of a Test make the contest even between bat and ball. Apart from the pitch, the outfield is also given a rating.
The various grades involved in the assessment by the ICC match referee are Very Good, Good, Average, Below Average, Poor, Unfit. The ICC rule states: “A pitch or outfield is deemed to be substandard if it receives a rating of poor or unfit. Sanctions may be applied by ICC to a venue that presents a substandard pitch or outfield for international cricket.”
