ICC releases pitch ratings for Gaddafi Stadium and Lord’s

DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has rated the pitches used in the first Test between England and New Zealand at Lord’s in London and the third ODI between Pakistan and Australia at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium as "unsatisfactory".

Both venues have received one demerit point each under the ICC Pitch and Outfield Monitoring Process.

Match referees Andy Pycroft (Lord’s) and Graeme La Brooy (Gaddafi Stadium) submitted their reports, reflecting concerns raised by match officials and team captains over the nature of the playing surfaces.

At Lord’s, Pycroft highlighted that the pitch heavily favoured bowlers throughout the Test, with excessive seam movement, variable bounce, and low carry making batting extremely difficult.

"There was plenty of excessive seam movement throughout the Test and the ball also kept extremely low on several occasions. The bounce was variable throughout as 16 wickets fell on the first day and 17 on the second. There was simply an over-balance in favour of ball against bat caused by the pitch," Pycroft said.

Meanwhile, Graeme La Brooy criticised the surface at Gaddafi Stadium, describing it as slow, low, and heavily favourable to bowlers, particularly spinners, making run-scoring a difficult task for batters.

"The pitch was slow and low and made scoring runs very difficult. It did not suit a One Day International game as batters had to spend more time to settle in. It helped spin very early in the match and continued the same way throughout," La Brooy said.

The ICC has forwarded the reports to the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), both of whom have 14 days to appeal the sanction. Neither venue had any previous demerit points.