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| November 29, 2006 | Wednesday | Ziqa'ad 7, 1427 |
Inzamam, Gayle blast NSK pitch
KARACHI, Nov 28: Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has described the pitch for the third and final Test against West Indies as substandard. Pakistan were bowled out for 304 runs on the second day after struggling to 257 for seven on day one despite a hundred from Mohammad Yousuf.
The batsmen faced severe problems with the low bounce and slow pace of the pitch.
“This is a very difficult wicket and it is going to get worse to bat on as the game progresses,” Inzamam said.
“After seeing the behaviour of the pitch on the first day there is no way one can describe it as up to Test standards.”
Inzamam, who struggled to 18 from 64 balls, said the pitch was not ideal for a Test match.
“By the third day the spinners are going to get lot of turn and the variable bounce is a major concern for everyone. Getting a total of 300 is good on this track,” he said.
The Pakistan Cricket Board curators at the National Stadium blamed excessive rolling for the low bounce.
“We just follow orders, that is all. We were told to cut off the grass and keep on rolling it to keep it dry and suitable for spinners and we did that,” one said.
West Indies opener Chris Gayle also described the wicket as the worst Test pitch he had ever seen.
“The pitch is horrendous for Test cricket because of the extreme slowness and lowness of it,” he wrote in his tour diary.
“It is the worst Test pitch I have ever seen so far in my career because the ball was almost rolling on the very first day of the match,” he added.
Gayle was out for 40 on Tuesday as West Indies lost six wickets for 191.
Pakistan's paceman Umar Gul also lashed out at the NSK pitch and said the home batsmen will find the going tough on their tour of South Africa next month after playing on slow tracks at home against the West Indies.
“The bowlers will not find it hard to adapt to the different tracks with more bounce in South Africa, but for the batsmen it will be a test after they have played on slow tracks in Pakistan,” Umar said.—Reuters
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