ISLAMABAD: The flat wicket at Pindi Cricket Stadium has received a second demerit point within nine months from the International Cricket Council after England clinched a 74-run win at Rawalpindi in the tourist’s first Test in Pakistan for 17 years.
A venue can be suspended from hosting international cricket if it accumulates five demerit points within five years.
“PCB chairman Ramiz Raja labelled the pitch as ‘embarrassing’ and Andy Pycroft of the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees agreed with his prognosis,” the ICC said on its website, adding that the pitch provided bowlers with very little assistance throughout the five-day contest.
“It was a very flat pitch which gave almost no assistance to any type of bowler,” Pycroft said. “That was the main reason why batters scored very fast and both sides posted huge totals. The pitch hardly deteriorated during the course of the match. Since there was very little in it for the bowlers, I found the pitch to be ‘below average’ as per the ICC guidelines.”
England went on to score 657 in 101 overs before Pakistan also replied with 579, with three batters from the home team scoring hundreds. England has since clinched the series with a narrow win in the second cricket test at Multan.
In March, a similar type of wicket at the same venue received a demerit point from the ICC when only 14 wickets fell over five days in a test match between Pakistan and Australia.
“Demerit points remain active for a rolling five-year period and when a venue accumulates five demerit points it is suspended from staging any international cricket for a period of 12 months,” the ICC said.
