From Newsgroup: uk.sport.cricket
2 DAY Melbourne and Perth Tests - NOT BAD SURFACE said BBC.
Ahmedabad Two Day Test SPIN Pitch - Death of test cricket said BBC.
2-Day Test Farce: Sunil Gavaskar and Akash Chopra Expose the Double
Standard in Cricket's Pitch Ratings
https://x.com/ByRakeshSimha/status/2005547722426945851?s=20
1. When a match ends in 2 days in India, the groundsmen are branded
devious or incompetent and the BCCI is accused of "killing Test
cricket." But when it happens in Australia, England and New Zealand,
it's kosher. Legendary batsman Sunil Gavaskar isn't holding back on this hypocrisy.
2. The Perth Test wrapped up in just two days with 32 wickets tumbling. Incredibly, referee Ranjan Madugalle of Sri Lanka, a country which has
more Macaulayputras per capita than India, rated the pitch "very good."
No outcry, no finger-pointing at curators for preparing a minefield.
Just business as usual in Aussie land.
3. Madugalle clearly wanted to remain the good boy in Anglo eyes. In
fact, for decades Sri Lankan referees have been quick to slap
punishments on Indian cricketers for trivial infractions. Inexplicably the @BCCI
has allowed this to continue unchecked. Sri Lankan match officials
should be put through the same scrutiny as Steve Bucknor of the West
Indies, who was exposed, shamed and banned for his biased umpiring
against India.
4. Then came Melbourne rCo another two-day farce at the MCG, 36 wickets in
142 overs due to wild seam movement and uneven bounce. Curators left
10mm of grass on the pitch by "human error." Gavaskar sarcastically
notes the new referee, Jeff Crowe (from NZ, but now in the USA) might downgrade it to just "good" rCo dropping the "very" from Madugalle's Perth rating.
5. Gavaskar calls it out: Why are Indian groundsmen seen as scheming
villains for similar pitches, while Aussie ones get a pass for
"mistakes"? He writes, rCLThey were astonished when the first Test match
pitch in Perth was given a very good rating by the match referee Ranjan Madugalle.rCY
6. This Ashes series marks the first time in 129 years with multiple
two-day Tests, costing Cricket Australia over AU$13 million in losses.
Yet, no global media storm about "killing Test cricket" like when it
happens in India. Gavaskar defends curators everywhere: Errors happen,
but the judgement should not depend on the country.
7. Time for cricket's governing bodies to level the playing field rCo literally. Kudos to Gavaskar for his razor-sharp sarcasm exposing the
double standards.
AKASH CHOPRA on Melbourne and Perth TWO DAY TESTS FARCE and HYPOCRISY of ICC
https://indianexpress.com/article/sports/cricket/aakash-chopra-mcg-test-ashes-pitches-10444583/
Aakash Chopra on MCG Test: rCLMatch ended in Ahmedabad in two days, a BBC report said, rCydeath of Test cricket.rCO Here, they say itrCOs actually not badrCY
"I am talking about the hypocrisy. The match ended in two days in Perth.
The ICC rates it a very good surface," noted Chopra
Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra was quite critical of the English
media and players. The Test at Perth ended in two days, but the rating
given was very good by ICC referee similary the game in Melbourne also
got over within a couple of days. Aakash Chopra noted that the narrative
has been more concentrated around the techniques of the batters and not
the pitches.
rCLWhen the match ended in Ahmedabad in two days, a BBC report said,
rCydeath of Test cricket.rCO Here, they say itrCOs actually not bad, that two-day Test matches are also great. Hypocrisy much. Something there and something else here,rCY Chopra observed on his YouTube channel.
rCLI am talking about the hypocrisy. The match ended in two days in Perth.
The ICC rates it a very good surface. The entire world says the pitch
was good and that the battersrCO technique has become bad. Then the same
thing happened in Melbourne. The match ended in two days. There also
they say the pitch was good, there was slightly more help, but the
battersrCO technique has become bad,rCY Chopra said.
rCLBen Stokes spoke very diplomatically because these guys, when they are talking about each other, they are very diplomatic. He said that it was favoring one skill more. If it had been a rank turner in India, they
would have said itrCOs like the death of Test cricket, and what sort of
pitch it is? There also it is helping the spin-bowling skill a little
more,rCY he added.
In the MCG Test, not even a single over of spin has been bowled. rCLNot
even a single over of spin was bowled on the Melbourne ground, and the
match got over. How is that right? If a Test match happens in India or
in subcontinental conditions and a single over of fast bowling is not
bowled, there is an uproar, but thatrCOs not the case here,rCY he said.
--- Synchronet 3.21a-Linux NewsLink 1.2