The India VS Australia 3rd Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2023 ended in just 2 days. The pitch was rated poor by the ICC. The reason cited by the ICC was the fact that the pitch offered no contest between bat and ball. But it was evident that the batters struggled. The ball started to turn square from the very first over. So, was this rating justified? Or is the media to blame regarding the scenario of the India VS Australia series? Here is an in-depth look:
India VS Australia 3rd Test ended in just 2 days:
If we are to speak about how long the test matches have lasted in the recent past, this test match was genuinely very short. There was evidently no contest between bat and ball. The game went on to the third day till the first session, but it was done and dusted on the 2nd day itself. A total of 31 wickets fell in a period of 2 days. Now that is certainly embarrassing for games of the standard of the India VS Australia test matches.
Match Referee says, “Ball turned from the 1st over itself”:
The match referee consulted both the team captains, Steve Smith, and Rohit Sharma. Based on their views and his observation, he submitted the reported and the pitch was tagged poor. This basically means that the venue of Indore has now been docked 3 points by the ICC. If a venue loses out 5 points in a period of 5 years, the venue is eventually banned for 1 year from active cricket.
When asked about his views, this is what match referee Chris Broad had to say, “The pitch, which was very dry, did not provide a balance between bat and ball, favoring spinners from the start. The fifth ball of the match broke through the pitch surface and continued to occasionally break the surface providing little or no seam movement and there was excessive and uneven bounce throughout the match.”
India VS Australia WTC Final Scenario:
The following is the scenario regarding the WTC Final:
- Australia has qualified for the WTC 2023 final.
- Sri Lanka will go up against New Zealand in a two-match test series in New Zealand.
- Sri Lanka will have to beat New Zealand 2-0.
- If Sri Lanka fails to bring out the 2-0 victory, India and Australia go through to the WTC final.
- The WTC final will be played at the Lords Cricket Ground in London on June 7, 2023.
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To know more go to the official website of the ICC.