After a swift 1.5-day conclusion to the second Test between India and South Africa in Cape Town, the focus shifted to the pitch used in the match. With India emerging victorious in a contest that witnessed 23 wickets falling on the opening day, captain Rohit Sharma publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with the inconsistent judgments from match referees concerning the early conclusions of matches in India and overseas. Now, ICC match referee Chris Broad has rendered his verdict on the Newlands pitch.
Broad has given the pitch used in the second Test between India and South Africa an ‘unsatisfactory’ rating, accompanied by a demerit point. Describing the conditions at Newlands as challenging for batting, Broad highlighted the quick and at times alarming bounce throughout the match, making shot execution difficult and resulting in several batters getting hit on the gloves.
While the demerit point itself doesn’t have an immediate impact, accumulation of six demerit points at a venue triggers a year-long prohibition from hosting international matches.
Rohit Sharma, in response to the pitch critics, launched a sharp attack, questioning the extensive discussions around sharp turn on Indian pitches compared to the relative silence when matches end early overseas. In a press conference after the Cape Town Test, he expressed his willingness to play on challenging pitches like the one in question but called for neutrality in assessing pitches based on their actual characteristics rather than the country they are located in.
Sharma pointed out discrepancies, referencing the below-average rating given to the World Cup final pitch, which he argued was unjustified considering a batsman scored a hundred in the final. He urged the ICC and match referees to evaluate pitches objectively, emphasizing the importance of neutrality in their assessments.
As the cricketing community awaits further developments, the conversation around pitch conditions and their impact on match outcomes continues to be a focal point in international cricket.
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