The scorecard at MRF Pachaiyappa's between Globe Trotters and UFCC (T Nagar) makes for sorry reading. At the end of Day 1, Globe Trotters, with first innings total of a meagre 134 runs, are on the verge of completing an innings win over UFCC (T Nagar). The latter, with just one wicket in hand, needs four more runs to make the hosts bat again. For all you know, it could be over in the first delivery on Day 2, Tuesday.
When TNCA went back to the three-day format this season, it was done so in the hope that it would prepare the players for the Ranji Trophy. Each season, the performance of the players has only been on the ascendence, and restructuring the format dominated the talks pre-season. And just into the fourth round, questions are already being raised, if going back to the three-day format is serving its purpose, especially with pitches like the one on offer.
On a pitch where 102.5 overs were sent down on Day 1, only one was from medium-pacer Prerak Mankad — which too was the last over of the day — said a thing or two about the pitch. In all, spinners took 28 of the 29 wickets with left-arm spinner S Ajith Ram having a match-haul of 10 wickets. Dharmendra Jadeja took 6/53 for UFCC.
For a team that is hoping that players would get ideal preparation for Ranji Trophy, such pitches are the last thing that is needed. Of course, such pitches are not new to the tournament. It happens every season at almost every venue, especially towards the end of the season when qualification and relegation are at stake. Batting becomes a lottery, where batters are resigned to their fate. But in the past week alone, there have been two bad-quality pitches. In the third round, India Pistons defeated Madras Cricket Club in five sessions at CPT-IP.
In the first round, at IC-Guru Nanak, Vijay CC's 237 was the highest total of the match and at IIT-Chemplast, no team scored 200 or more. While pitches were better in the second and third round, with the domestic season around the corner, poor-quality pitches are not beneficial to players. Privately, players reveal these are far from ideal conditions to prepare for the domestic season.
"When we go up north and lose games on seamer-friendly pitches, questions are raised about our batters' technique and what not. And here we don't even get a chance to play fast bowlers frequently. Very few teams operate with pacers and how do we develop the skill set?" asks a player choosing to remain anonymous.
Keeping the larger picture in mind, perhaps time has come for TNCA to penalise teams that roll out sub-standard pitches. Appointing an independent committee to oversee the pitch preparation across venues won't be a bad idea.
Brief scores: At IITM-Chemplast: Sea Hawks 342/6 in 89 ovs (R Karthikeyan 43, RS Mokit Hariharan 68, S Swaminathan 58 batting, S Harish Kumar 87 batting; Siddharth S Ahhuja 3/47) vs Alwarpet CC.