India vs South Africa Third Test: ICC Rates Wanderers Pitch as “Poor”, Gives 3 Demerit Points

Following an uproar over the poor pitch condition which led to uneven bounce and the batsmen being hit on several occasions, the pitch was inspected by ICC Match Referees Elite Panel member Andy Pycroft who rated the Wanderers Stadium pitch as “poor”.

New Delhi, Jan 30: The Wanderers pitch in South Africa’s Johannesburg has been rated as “poor” and as per the ICC Pitch and Outfield Monitoring Process, it has received three demerit points, the International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Tuesday. The third and final Test match between India and South Africa at Wanderers was stopped on the third day on January 26 as the umpires and the match referee were concerned about the players’ safety.

Following an uproar over the poor pitch condition which led to uneven bounce and the batsmen being hit on several occasions, the pitch was inspected by ICC Match Referees Elite Panel member Andy Pycroft who rated the Wanderers Stadium pitch as “poor”.

“The pitch prepared for the final Test was a poor one. It had excessively steep and unpredictable bounce, and excessive seam movement. It deteriorated quickly as the match progressed, which made batting extremely difficult and hazardous, resulting in the medical staff from both the sides having to come onto the field of play multiple times to treat their batsmen,” said Pycroft in the report which has been forwarded to Cricket South Africa. (Also Read: ‘If Indians Had Walked Off, They Would Have Been Called Sissies,’ Says Sunil Gavaskar)

“As the on-field umpires are also responsible for the players’ safety, they expressed concerns about the behavior of the pitch, and debated after day three if it was appropriate to continue the match. In the end, the umpires made the decision to continue and the Test reached its natural conclusion on day four. However, there was still excessive variable bounce and seam movement when the Test match ended,” the report added.

The demerit points will be in force for a rolling five-year period and if during this five-year period the Wanderers stadium reaches the threshold of five demerit points, then it will be suspended from staging any international cricket for 12 months.

The ICC has assigned three demerit points to The Wanderers after its pitch received a “poor” rating following the recent South Africa v India Test.

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— ICC (@ICC) January 30, 2018

India won the third Test by 63 runs after a pulsating play of over 3 days that saw 40 wickets fall for 805 runs in almost 296 overs. Dean Elgar with an unbeaten 86 was the top-scorer in the match.

What the ICC says on pitch

·       In the revised ICC Pitch and Outfield Monitoring Process, which was introduced on 4 January 2018, if a pitch or outfield is rated as being substandard, that venue will be allocated a number of demerit points.

·       One demerit point will be awarded to venues whose pitches are rated by the match referees as below average, while three and five demerit points will be awarded to venues whose pitches are marked as poor and unfit, respectively.

·       No demerit point will be awarded when the outfield is rated as below average, but two and five demerit points will be awarded to venues whose outfields are marked as poor and unfit, respectively.

·       Demerit points will remain active for a rolling five-year period.

·       When a venue accumulates five demerit points (or crosses that threshold), it will be suspended from hosting any international cricket for a period of 12 months, while a venue will be suspended from staging any international cricket for 24 months when it reaches the threshold of 10 demerit points.