Saturday, March 17, 2007
Pitches And Huge Totals
The World Cup has begun! Arguably with an upset. West Indies, the hosts managed to subdue Pakistan, that too disabling their superiority in the batting department. There were a few other matches also, Australia,s match against Scotland being the most noteworthy among them. Australia piled up 330 plus and then skittled out Scotland for a paltry score to register a 203-run victory.
All these matches have so far failed to give enough signals about the most worrying factor which keeps on disturbing the sleep of the captains and the analysts. The pitch. Even after four tournament matches and a few warm-up matches held earlier, the Caribbean tracks have not betrayed their preferences. But from what little one has seen, certain conclusions can be arrived at. The pitches seen so far have not been blessed with scorching pace. In fact they have been on the slow side but perhaps without upsetting the rhythm of the batsmen. Another thing is the carry that is there. There is bounce even for the ball just short of good length. And at least in the early overs the slips will be in business. From Darren Powel and the Australians to the bowlers from the also-rans could make the ball bounce to make the attacking strokes a tad risky. Indiscriminate pulling and arrogant front-foot on-the rise strokes could invite trouble. But the carry is uniform and moderate. Batsmen who have the technique to counter it, can score with comfort on these wickets. Only, huge totals look unlikely at least at this stage.
There is some life in these tracks. The ball moves a bit and seams a little. But everything is in moderation so that careful batting can not be denied its rewards. (The pitch at St. Lucia yesterday was a two-bounce one While Franklin got Joice caught at the wicket off a ball which bounced a shade more than expected, Bond’s in-swingers skidded dangerously at the other end.) Spin also looks like having a role in this tournament. In the practice match against West Indies, Indian spin could bowl only six balls for a wicket. But in the other matches even weaker teams like Bermuda and Kenya used spin to great advantage.
These are early days. Pitches can behave differently, responding to the sun in different degrees. But scores of three hundred and more between strong teams may not be as easy to happen as they did in recent Kiwis-Australia series.
But there is one variable which we ignore only at our peril. The possible climate change that may happen during the one and a half month-long tournament. Late April could be slightly different from early March. And this factor could undo a lot of planning done in
the light of the pitch conditions interpreted so far.
Tags: World Cup pitches
