Mark Waugh passes explosive remark about Indian pitches; draws comparison with county tracks

Former Australian Captain Mark Waugh has continued his tirade against the pitches being offered to play on in the ongoing Border- Gavaskar Trophy. After lambasting the pitches in Nagpur, Delhi and Indore for not being up to the “Test Standard”, he has taken fresh aim at the Ahmedabad pitch, on which the last match of the series is being played.

The pitch at Ahmedabad so far seems to be the best one on offer among the four, but Waugh is unhappy about the way the pitch was finalized for the match at the last moment, keeping everyone in the dark. The curators at Ahmedabad had prepared two pitches, both having some tinge of green on them, very unlike the dust bowls that were presented in the last 3 matches. The final selection though was reportedly done after the pre- match conferences were addressed by the captains of either teams. Stand-in Aussie skipper Steve Smith was taken by surprise, and Mark Waugh is clearly not amused.

Here is what Mark Waugh had to say about the Indian pitches

Expressing his anger at the move, Waugh said on FOX Cricket, “This is not on. I don’t know how you don’t know what pitch you’re playing on. In Australia, I think the groundsman and curators are told months in advance, so they set up the pitch for the camera, the side-screen, the spectators. But in India, it’s different”.

Comparing the situation with county cricket back home he further added, “It’s a bit like county cricket. You used to turn up to county grounds and there would be three pitches prepared depending on who turned up for the opposition side, then they would decide. I don’t know what’s going on here but I think something needs to be done about this.”

India won the first two tests at Delhi & Nagpur, but the strategy of preparing turning wickets backfired badly at Indore, where Australian Spinners Matthew Kuhnemann & Nathan Lyon took full advantage of the rank turner, both grabbing five wicket hauls. India’s famed batting line-up though, failed to display the craft they seem to have pioneered and slipped in both innings handing Australia a 9 wicket win.