by: Atika Mehboob TN Sport Pakistan:
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has given an “unsatisfactory” rating to the pitch used for the second Test match between Bangladesh and New Zealand at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Dhaka. This rating comes after concerns were raised about the inconsistent bounce and excessive turn offered by the pitch throughout the match, which is deemed as one of the shortest Test matches (by overs) in cricketing history.
Fifteen wickets fell on the first day of the Test match only, giving hints of being an absolute challenge to the batters. Match referee, David Boon, submitted the report to the International Cricket Council, highlighting his concerns about the uneven bounce of the pitch. Boon mentioned to the ICC in the report that
“It appeared that the pitch may have been under-prepared, as it was not hard and was covered in grass clippings on day one. From the first session onwards, throughout the remainder of the match, the bounce was inconsistent with numerous balls bursting the surface.”
“Deliveries from spin bowlers often went over the batter’s shoulder when playing forward and then occasionally stayed very low,” the report further read.
The visiting captain, Tim Southee, was not too happy with the pitch as well and he was noted as calling the pitch ‘probably the worst’ after the match. This demerit point is the second the pitch has received in 5 years, the last one was incurred in the match between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in 2018, which ended up producing a result in three days.
