Pakistan unperturbed by batting pitch
Team practises under lights to assess dew factor.
KARACHI:
While curators have promised a lively pitch for the World Cup semi-final clash between Pakistan and India tomorrow, the team management is expecting a batting-friendly pitch at Mohali’s Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium.
Daljeet Singh, the curator of the PCA Stadium, claimed it will be a typical Mohali track which assists fast-bowlers and offers good pace and bounce. However, the team management’s assessment differs.
“There is grass on the pitch but it’s dead grass,” a Pakistan team management official told The Express Tribune from Mohali. “It will not make much difference and the track is likely to be batting-friendly.”
India were expected to prefer a batting pitch, with less assistance for fast-bowlers, due to their strong batting line-up and a fiery Pakistan bowling attack spurred by Umar Gul. However, the team management is unperturbed and is ready to play at any track.
“Even if it’s a batting paradise, we feel our bowlers are good enough to cope with a strong Indian batting line-up.”
The official, however, said nothing can be confirmed on the nature of the pitch since there is still some time left. “We will have a close look on the pitch today before finalising our plans for the match.”
Pakistan practise under lights
The Pakistan team held their practice session under lights at the PCA Stadium yesterday. The team underwent fielding practice in order to assess the dew factor. Dew is expected to play a vital role in the game with the team batting second having an advantage due to wet conditions that create difficulties for the bowling side.
The curators stopped watering the ground three days before the eagerly-awaited match to reduce the dew factor.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 29th, 2011.
While curators have promised a lively pitch for the World Cup semi-final clash between Pakistan and India tomorrow, the team management is expecting a batting-friendly pitch at Mohali’s Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium.
Daljeet Singh, the curator of the PCA Stadium, claimed it will be a typical Mohali track which assists fast-bowlers and offers good pace and bounce. However, the team management’s assessment differs.
“There is grass on the pitch but it’s dead grass,” a Pakistan team management official told The Express Tribune from Mohali. “It will not make much difference and the track is likely to be batting-friendly.”
India were expected to prefer a batting pitch, with less assistance for fast-bowlers, due to their strong batting line-up and a fiery Pakistan bowling attack spurred by Umar Gul. However, the team management is unperturbed and is ready to play at any track.
“Even if it’s a batting paradise, we feel our bowlers are good enough to cope with a strong Indian batting line-up.”
The official, however, said nothing can be confirmed on the nature of the pitch since there is still some time left. “We will have a close look on the pitch today before finalising our plans for the match.”
Pakistan practise under lights
The Pakistan team held their practice session under lights at the PCA Stadium yesterday. The team underwent fielding practice in order to assess the dew factor. Dew is expected to play a vital role in the game with the team batting second having an advantage due to wet conditions that create difficulties for the bowling side.
The curators stopped watering the ground three days before the eagerly-awaited match to reduce the dew factor.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 29th, 2011.