The India-Australia Test will be the M Chinnaswamy’s first since it’s drainage system was refurbished © Hindustan Times
The spotlight on pitches has returned to Indian cricket following their defeat inside three days on a rank turner in Pune by an unfancied Australian team. Preparations at the venue for the second Test, Bangalore, though suggest the playing surface might not be as extreme.
R Sudhakar Rao, secretary at the Karnataka State Cricket Association, has said that the groundstaff at the M Chinnaswamy stadium are working towards providing a strip that helps a Test match to last its entire duration. He also said the Indian team has not arrived on site yet and haven’t left any instructions that to be followed either.
“So far we have not been told anything,” he told the Hindu, “Once they arrive, we have to see if they make any suggestions.
“Our intention is to prepare a sporting, Test-match pitch. We want a five-day match. We definitely don’t want to see the match end in two and a half days.”
The last Test match at the M Chinnaswamy stadium, between India and South Africa in 2015, was washed out with only one day’s play possible. That promoted a large-scale renovation and though the pitches on the square were untouched, the outfield itself was dug out to install a state-of-the-art drainage system. Bangalore has already hosted an international match since then – the T20I between India and England – but this will be its first Test since its makeover. PR Vishwanathan, the South Zone head of the BCCI’s ground and pitches committee, is expected to oversee preparations before it begins on March 4.
For now, the Chinnaswamy deck, under the supervision of the in-house curator K Sriram, continues to get water. “We like to keep some moisture underneath. So we haven’t stopped watering it,” Rao said. “We’ll water it until two or three days before the match. Then we will see what the pitch looks like, two days out, and take a call.
“On the first two days, the pitch should be good for batting and help medium-pacers. On days two and three there should be slow turn. Then on the last two days there should be more turn. I have told Sriram to prepare that kind of wicket,” Rao said “At least, that is our intention.”
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo