World Cup: If India cancels the ticket for Ahmedabad, will the final be held on the old pitch? ICC curator raised questions
International Cricket Council (ICC) pitch consultant Andy Atkinson has raised the question whether the Ahmedabad pitch will be prepared without any bias if India reaches the final. The final of the World Cup 2023 will be held on 19 November. The Daily Mail reported that Atkinson had gone to Ahmedabad last Friday to oversee preparations for the final after reportedly being dissatisfied with pitch changes in favor of hosts India.
The Indian Express had reported on Tuesday that the Indian team management had asked the BCCI curator to remove most of the grass from the Wankhede Stadium pitch for the semi-final match against New Zealand. The management wanted a slow pitch that would help India’s spinners. India have performed well on slow pitches at home in the last few years. Before the World Cup, the team management had requested to hold its matches on slow pitches.
Pitches are prepared under the supervision of Atkinson
Pitches at ICC events are prepared under the supervision of Atkinson, who along with the home board decide which pitches will be used for which matches. Although; The Daily Mail report said that three out of four group matches at the Ahmedabad Stadium were not played on the scheduled pitch. Atkinson fears the same thing could happen if India reaches the final on Sunday.
Atkinson wants final pitch number 5
Atkinson’s recommendation was that the final should be played on pitch number 5, which has been used only once. However, they learned last week that the match could be held on pitch number 6, which has been used twice. Indian spinners will get help on this.
What did Atkinson say in the email?
In his email, Atkinson warned, “As a result, it should be anticipated that for the first time an ICC CWC (Cricket World Cup) final will use a pitch that has been specially selected and prepared as requested by the team management or host board.” Has been done. Or will it be selected and prepared in the normal manner without any bias or played on an unquestionably normal pitch?”
