Brisbane’s top cricket venue has been hit a demerit point after the pitch produced for the weekend’s express two-day Test between Australia and South Africa received a ‘below average’ rating.
The recent Aussies-Proteas clash at the Gabba was done in under six sessions after a whopping 34 wickets were taken in two days. It was just the second time a Test in Australia had finished so early.
The view among pundits was the heavy layer of grass and soft underbelly of the Gabba wicket generated additional seam movement and, subsequently, helped both bowling attacks significantly.
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ICC match referee Richie Richardson on Tuesday night handed down his findings, rating the Brisbane deck ‘below average’, It means the Gabba received one demerit point under the ICC pitch and outfield monitoring process.
“Overall, the Gabba pitch for this Test match was too much in favour of the bowlers,” he said.
“There was extra bounce and occasional excessive seam movement. The odd delivery also kept low on the second day, making it very difficult for batters to build partnerships.
“I found the pitch to be below average as per the ICC guidelines since it was not an even contest between bat and ball.”
Elgar questions safety of Gabba pitch | 01:36
South African skipper Dean Elgar asked the umpires whether the pitch was safe during the game and continued that harsh criticism post-match.
“Thirty-four wickets in two days – pretty one-sided affair, I would say,” he said.
“How it started to play with some seriously steep bounce with the old ball, you are kind of on a hiding to none as a batting unit.
“If you think about it, only two or maybe three batters, applied themselves half-decently and scored runs.
“I don’t think it was a very good Test wicket, no.”
Australian star Marbus Labuschagne said the quality of bowling attacks on both sides demanded a better wicket.
“It felt a bit like a Shield game,” he said.
“We’ve seen a fair few wickets like that (at the Gabba), but obviously you don’t have two sides with bowling attacks of four or five guys bowling over 150 (km/h), that’s probably the difference.
“Test cricket is an endurance battle. Can the batter outlast the bowler? It’s a strategical game and obviously when you play on a wicket like this it brings the match so close together.
“It becomes a little bit of a lottery about who gets the upper hand on a wicket like that.
“With such a good bowling attack, they sacrificed a little bit on their batting because they play the four quicks and a spinner. That played into our advantage this game because you probably didn’t need five bowlers on a wicket like that.”
— with NCA Newswire
