Preparing true wickets needs a concerted effort

The recent Test series in Zimbabwe once again exposed the Indian limitations on playing surfaces abroad. While the extra pace and bounce found our batsmen deficient in technique and judgement, our bowlers often got carried away by how sharp they looked on those wickets and tended to pitch it short, neglecting the fundamentals of length and line.

This is an old, old story. From the first Test match I ever watched, and that was all of 45 years ago, critics have been crying from the rooftops for the preparation of sporting wickets in India. But slow, low wickets continue to be the norm in India.

What must India do to produce sporting wickets? To find an answer, I sought the views of an expert, who has both played hard, competitive cricket and actually helped prepare Test match wickets. P Mukund is a fine all rounder who served the Tamil Nadu cause with distinction in the seventies. His uncle Kasturi Rangan who was once selected to tour the West Indies as a paceman, has been the curator of the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore for decades. Mukund, who holds a post graduate degree in agriculture science, has followed in his uncle's footsteps in running a nursery and gaining an excellent reputation as landscapist and curator of cricket grounds. At different times, he has been involved in developing and maintaining the Chepauk ground.

Mukund feels that caring for our grounds and preparing true wickets need the following factors: 1. The right proportions in the soil content. 2. Proper management of the moisture level. 3. The right quality and quantity of grass. 4. Skilled ground staff.

When Mukund and I began our first class careers, the north generally abounded in `pata' wickets, with their clayey surfaces rolled to death, and shining in the sun and with not a blade of grass left on them. The wickets in the south, especially Chepauk, had some pace and bounce on them; a good spinner benefited as much as the quicker bowlers. On the third day, or earlier, if the wicket was under prepared, the ball turned, fizzed and bounced. Mukund remembers the 1972-1973 Tamil Nadu- Bombay Ranji Trophy final when he and Edmonds were adjudged caught off Shivalkar snorters that pitched outside the leg stump and went straight into slip's hands. Over the years, the wickets have all slowed down to such an extent that good batsmen can negotiate even huge turn on them.

What we need is a concerted effort by all concerned. It is up to the BCCI to earmark a great deal more funds for care of grounds and preparation and maintenance of pitches all over the country - and not just at Test centres. Mukund also calls for a common programme, if such a plan is not already on the anvil, to train ground staff at these centres so that they all come to possess the same level of knowhow. With our better understanding of soil physics today, there's no reason why we can't prepare world class cricket pitches, he feels. He should know, for he was one of those responsible for the creation of a magnificent strip at Chepauk for the England Test match in 1993.