In the recent game of India vs New Zealand, visitors were restricted to 99/8 in the first innings and the hosts finished the target in just 19.5 overs. The batters from both sides struggled to hit a maximum. Indian captain Rohit Sharma stated that it was a shocker of the wicket and unfit for T20. The match was held at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.
For this reason, the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) has decided to appoint two experts for Lucknow’s Ekana Stadium so that the pitch disaster isn’t repeated again during IPL.“We are going to appoint two specialists who will take care of the stadium. One will be an expert on the pitch and another will be a professional on the outfield. We are taking required permissions from other state associations to hire their services” said Ankit Chatterjee, the CEO of the UPCA
UPCA to hire two specialists to avoid pitch disaster in IPL 2023
Earlier, Surendra Yadav was the curator of this pitch has been replaced by Sanjeev Agarwal who belongs from Gwalior. Lucknow has hosted the Indian Premier League in the past year. The 16th season of IPL is going to start on April 1 and follow the conventional home and away format. In the past three years, the regular format was dismissed due to Covid.
Though Lucknow’s pitch has hosted IPL matches BCCI confirmed that it’s the first time that Lucknow’s game is hosted there. This franchise practices a lot on the ground and will have a home advantage in the ground in IPL 2023.
“We want the playing conditions to be foolproof and we don’t want to take any chances for the IPL. The franchise also practises a lot at the ground and they need to have home advantage and we will make sure everything is in place for the IPL and we will ensure there are no such issues during the season”- Chatterjee added
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