Kanpur curator Shiv Kumar tells bowlers not to panic after day one's run feast. The wicket will be bowler-friendly as the game goes on, he insists
Kanpur curator Shiv Kumaru00a0tellsu00a0bowlersu00a0notu00a0tou00a0panicu00a0after day one's run feast. The wicket willu00a0be bowler-friendly as the game goes on, he insists
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The run feast that had started at Motera last week continued at the Green Park on the opening day of India's second Test against Sri Lanka.
If the opening day in Ahmedabad saw India scoring 385 for six, they did even better here, registering 417 for two, India's highest total in a day.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India's chief curator Daljit Singh had told MiD DAY after the Motera fiasco that such pitches are detrimental to the future of Test cricket, while the Ahmedabad curator Dhiraj Parsana used the drop in temperature as an excuse for a flat track.
But before the Kanpur Test, curator Shiv Kumar promised a 'sporting' track which would have something in it for the bowlers as well.
Naturally, after watching Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid making an efficient three-pronged spin attack of Muttiah Muralitharan, Rangana Herath and Ajantha Mendis look like club bowlers, the same question popped up: Will Test cricket be killed sooner than expected?
Sadly, the question never even touched Shiv Kumar's mind. In fact, he was very happy with the way the wicket behaved on the opening day. "The definition of a sporting track is that after some assistance for the bowlers early in the morning, it should help batsmen on the first and second day of the match, so I am extremely happy with what has happened so far," said Shiv Kumar.
Sri Lanka coach Trevor Bayliss, however, appeared to be disappointed with the nature of the strip. "Ahmedabad was little bit quicker. And, this one had even less carry for the bowlers. It was very difficult for the boys out there.
"There was not much turn; only Murali got some. Hopefully, it will stay like that for the next few days when we bat," Bayliss said.
No margin for error
"As I said you only had to be a fraction short and the batsmen could go on the backfoot and play an attacking shot. If you pitch it six inches further up they can come forward and drive. The scope for error wasn't large," added Bayliss.
Shiv Kumar, though, reiterated that the wicket will help spinners as the game goes on.
"Just wait and watch, it will surely be a bowler-friendly wicket as the game goes on," said Kumar.
Even Virender Sehwag, who smashed his 16th Test ton, predicted the wicket will offer turn and variable bounce on the last two days. "In India, you always get a good track to bat on the first and second day. But as the game progresses, then bowlers get help. I think this Kanpur wicket will break up on the third or fourth day and then bowlers will get help. There will be turn or maybe the ball will keep low," said Sehwag.
Let's hope Sehwag is spot on in his prophecy, otherwise Shiv Kumar will have to come up with excuses like Parsana.
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