Lord's refuses to answer prayer for pacy pitch

[G_B_]

Mick Hunt, the Lord’s groundsman, is renowned for being his own man when it comes to preparing his pitches and the MCC refused to answer whether the surface for this week’s second Test will have the pace and bounce England are demanding. The pitch Hunt produced for the first Test against Sri Lanka last month was one of the slowest seen at the ground in recent years and began a trend which continued at Headingley, and then the first Test against India at Trent Bridge. Last year England asked for slow pitches but then they had Graeme Swann in the attack bowling to Australian batsmen weak against spin. Now Swann has gone they would ideally like the pitches to support their strong seam attack but a long dry summer has not helped groundsmen. They have left more grass on the surfaces than usual to try and help the bowlers but this has made little difference because the pitches are biscuit dry underneath. An MCC spokesman would only say yesterday that Hunt is preparing his pitch in the normal fashion. In the past he has said: “We do our own thing here.†Such is the sensitivity around pitches at the moment following the criticism of the surface at Trent Bridge, the England and Wales Cricket Board were on Monday refusing interview requests with Chris Wood, their pitches liaison officer. It is his job to monitor Test pitch preparation in the weeks leading up to a match. Nottinghamshire are not used to criticism of their hosting of Test cricket which in recent years has seen them emerge as the most successful ground outside London. Lisa Pursehouse, the Nottinghamshire chief executive, was, along with other counties, in a meeting yesterday with the ECB’s major match group, which decides how to allocate international cricket. “It would be very irrational if something like this would impact on our ability to stage international matches. I would be incredibly disappointed,†she said. “Steve has never made an error like this before. When most of us make a mistake we know why we’ve done it. Steve is dealing with natural factors all the time. I’m leaving him alone because he’s a bit fragile but we’ll speak after the game, just as we would normally. What he has said to me is he would change nothing about his preparation.†England will have their first look at the Lord’s pitch on Tuesday which will decide the prospect of Simon Kerrigan returning to the side. Peter Moores, the head coach, has played a big role in trying to restore Kerrigan to Test cricket having helped him recover from his debut last year when he was coach of Lancashire. “He is a good bowler, there is no doubt about that and his record in first-class cricket proves that,†Moores said. “He had a tough debut, yes. He has gone away and learnt. He has worked extremely hard to get himself where he wants to be and he gets another chance in the squad. If he plays or not will depend on when we see the surface. He is a very talented bowler, a very talented young man. It is pretty well-known we are looking to try and identify who will be the spinner for the future. Simon has got a chance in the squad and to be that spinner if he gets selected for the match.â€

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/cricket/international/england/10967251/England-v-India-Lords-refuses-to-answer-prayer-for-pacy-pitch.html

[G_B_]

rumours on twitter it will have more pace and carry than Trent bridge. But its not going to be an out and out pacy pitch

[shortbread]

rumours on twitter it will have more pace and carry than Trent bridge. But its not going to be an out and out pacy pitch

That might simply make batting easier. The tb wicket was so slow it did not allow the batsmen to score freely!!

[Old guy]

only ishant can save us

[G_B_]

That might simply make batting easier. The tb wicket was so slow it did not allow the batsmen to score freely!!

yes. it should aid the stroke makers. Lords traditionally has been on the flattish side.

[Old guy]

yes. it should aid the stroke makers. Lords traditionally has been on the flattish side.

that is why i do not want them to change team

[G_B_]

truth be told the most result oriented pitches in England have been Old trafford Trent bridge and headingly. Edgebaston is so so Lords and Oval have been on the flatter side with Oval helping the spinners. The most result oriented pitch in England is Durham. But thats a newer ground. Rose Bowl has been mixed.

[Precambrian]

:hysterical: So when we used to alter our pitches, that was pitch doctoring. But when they do it, it is nothing deplorable. Funny to see how mighty the English team has fallen that it is now begging its own curators to prepare tailored track.

[G_B_]

To be fair to england. I dont think asking for a more pacy pitch than trent bridge is pitch doctoring. I dont think they are asking for out and out green pitches

[NareshK]

To be fair to england. I dont think asking for a more pacy pitch than trent bridge is pitch doctoring. I dont think they are asking for out and out green pitches

Its not and home team should be given conditions which suit them but when Dhoni and Indian team said they want pitches helpful for them during England tour, there was a big furore over how he shouldn't be asking curators for a certain pitch and it was pitch doctoring etc. etc. and funnily enough, most of the criticism was from English ex cricketers themselves but now they are demanding it themselves. Effing hypocrites.

[rkt.india]

Trentbridge was their paciest and bounciest track in 2011 but a damp squib this time.

[div]

^ Dravid said Trentbridge was flat in 1996.

[G_B_]

Its not and home team should be given conditions which suit them but when Dhoni and Indian team said they want pitches helpful for them during England tour' date=' there was a big furore over how he shouldn't be asking curators for a certain pitch and it was pitch doctoring etc. etc. and funnily enough, most of the criticism was from English ex cricketers themselves but now they are demanding it themselves. Effing hypocrites.[/quote'] oh yeah its hypocrisy for sure. The problem is that England has way too many newspapers and media outlets for being a relatively small nation. So you need to generate some controversy.

[rkt.india]

^ Dravid said Trentbridge was flat in 1996.

Not in 2011.

[G_B_]

Fair to say the dynamics of England in the 90s was different. They made flat pitches as a defensive gesture. I think England were consistently ranked 8th in the rankings back then. Back then you also had like max 6 grounds. So every ground had a test match. Now you have 10 grounds. So back then you could make flat pitches. You cant make the same mistake. Newer grounds like Durham and the rose bowl southampton and cardiff will take your matches.

[adi B]

Lords traditionally has more bounce than this TB pitch but It's relatively flatter.the overcast conditions and the slope makes it bit more difficult for the batsmen.good bowlers bowling the perfect length will succeed and stroke makers should do well as well. My interest and hope in the test match lies on the hands of the Indian pacers who need helpful conditions to succeed