Players, coaches call wicket at Brian Lara venue dangerous, unfair

THE wicket at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy was condemned on June 26 as players, coaches and commentators described the surface as dangerous and inconsistent with one player saying he was glad his team does not have to play cricket at the venue again during the International Cricket Council (ICC) T20 World Cup.

From the time the match in Tarouba between South Africa and Afghanistan bowled off at 8.30 pm on June 26, it was evident that runs wouldn’t be flowing off the bat. Uneven bounce made batting challenging as the bowlers had a field day.

Speaking about the wicket, South Africa captain Aiden Markram said, “The wickets that we’ve had throughout the competition have been pretty challenging, tonight’s wicket was pretty challenging once again...(however) it can’t always be a batter’s game. If you would reflect back on this wicket, we would probably be pretty happy that we are not playing here again.”

He said battling at the wicket is key. “The wickets are the same for both teams on the night, so finding a way to win is the most important thing.”

Markram credited his bowlers for their performance as they bowled out Afghanistan for 56, which was aided by the wicket. “The pitch was obviously quite challenging as we saw, but like I said you still have to get the ball in the right areas. You give credit to your bowlers. They have used the conditions really well and managed to get us into a winning position.”

Markram said “adapting” is what cricketers must do when they move from venue to venue during their careers.

Afghanistan head coach Jonathan Trott was also frustrated with the wicket. “I don’t want to get myself into trouble and I don’t want to come across as bitter or sour grapes, but that is not the pitch you want to have a semifinal of a World Cup on – plain and simple,” Trott said.

“It should be a fair contest. I am not saying it should be flat completely with no spin and no seam movement, but I am saying you should not have batters worried about going forward and the ball going over their heads. You should be confident in their foot movement and being able to hit through the line or use their skills. T20 cricket is about attacking, scoring runs and taking wickets, not looking to survive.”

The commentators during the South Africa-Afghanistan match also spoke about the unsatisfactory wicket at Brian Lara Cricket Academy.

Following the match, former cricketers Tom Moody and Andy Flower shared their views on the wicket at Tarouba during an espncricinfo programme. Former Australian cricketer Moody said, “I don’t think you want to see it in any game to be honest with you. You want a fair contest between bat and ball...for one, you need consistent bounce.

“It will be something they (curators) will reflect on, if not reflecting on already and thinking well we’ve got this wrong,” Moody said.

Flower, a former player for Zimbabwe who is now a coach, said batsmen try to average where a ball will pitch when batting. He said it was difficult to do that. “As a batter, you try to predict where the ball is going to be...on this pitch, it was almost impossible to do that on any consistent basis at all. I thought it was actually a little bit dangerous. A couple of balls flew off a length around shoulder, neck, chin height.”

Sixes and fours were expected during the tournament. At a media briefing at UWI SPEC, St Augustine in March head of cricket operations at Cricket West Indies Roland Holder, said the curators were aiming to prepare wickets conducive for batting.

On March 26, the final leg of CWI curator workshops ended in Trinidad. Before the Trinidad leg, workshops were held in Antigua, St Lucia, St Vincent, Barbados, and Guyana.

“From a batsman’s perspective, definitely lots of runs I hope,” Holder told the media about the World Cup matches he expected.

Asked if bowlers should be fearful, Holder said fans will have to be aware of cork balls flying into the stands.

“If you look at the quality of the players coming to the World Cup, I think even spectators should be worried and where you park your cars. You probably need to be very conscious of that.”

Holder said the workshops were not only focused on the T20 World Cup, but also helping curators learn what type of surface to produce for each format.

“It covered curatorship in general, so if you have a basic understanding of curatorship you could then prepare your pitches to suit. A T20 pitch you are looking for a batter-friendly surface,” Holder said.

At most venues during the tournament, it has been tough for batsmen. The US have also hosted matches during the World Cup. The wicket at the New York venue has come under scrutiny as teams have struggled to post 100.

In a statement, the ICC said “the pitches used so far at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium have not played as consistently as we would have all wanted.” There has only been four scores over 200 during the tournament across the nine World Cup venues – six in the Caribbean and three in the US.