Magazine - NZ Pitch Under Fire.

By Editor in Cricket on 18th Dec 2009 6:00

The debate surrounding Phil Stoyanoff's prime real estate reared its head once more as McLean Park remained virgin territory for the hapless New Zealand cricket team.

Akin to Groundhog Day, captain Daniel Vettori fired a salvo at the pitch on the Napier venue following their drawn third and final test match against Pakistan last night. The match ended in an anti-climax yesterday with New Zealand in an unbeatable position but persistent showers late in the afternoon denied them a chance of victory. ``You still come back to not wanting the pitch to be at its best on the fourth or fifth day and that was pretty much the case,'' Vettori said.

New Zealand Cricket's ``Swiss knife'' delivered a cutting post-mortem examination summary after head groundsman Stoyanoff's blunt prematch forecast that a result was imminent because neither side was adept at batting. Vettori, who is captain/selector in the absence of a coach these days, had earlier this year criticised the pitch after the West Indies decider got rained out in similar circumstances.

Stoyanoff had broken from tradition to provide a wicket that offered seamers some traction on a notoriously benign batting track but the Pakistanis, who regretted the decision a day later, elected to bat after winning the toss. Rueing the washout, Vettori lamented: ``On test-match wickets, you want variable bounce on fourth and fifth days and [for it to] become harder and harder to bat on [but] this wicket got better and better as it went on. ``I think every time we come to Napier you'll probably see the same thing. We were denied an opportunity this afternoon so we look back on that with a bit of disappointment.''


While the bitter verdict has some substance, the fact the wicket yielded 20 wickets for the Caps does beg the question: Did the batsmen show enough urgency in light of predicted rain and poor light?

Source & More: www.hawkesbaytoday.co.nz

Read more articles in Cricket, by Editor or from December 2009.