In evaluating surfaces, Rohit Sharma has criticized the ICC and the match referees for what he considers to be double standards. Rohit, who had just triumphed over the shortest Test in the sport’s history on the strength of a lottery track that was excessively loaded in benefit of the seam bowlers, was vehemently critical of the slander directed at grounds in India that lack distance.
“I mean, we saw what happened in this match, how the pitch played and stuff like that,” Rohit said. “I honestly don’t mind playing on pitches like this. As long as everyone keeps their mouth shut in India and don’t talk too much about Indian pitches, honestly.
“Because you come here [in Test cricket] to challenge yourself. Yes, it is dangerous. It is challenging. So, and when people come to India, it is again pretty challenging as well. Look, when you are here to play Test cricket, we talk about Test cricket, the ultimate prize, Test cricket being the pinnacle and stuff like that. I think it’s important that we also stand by it.
“When you are put up against, a challenge like that, you come and face it. That’s what happens in India, but, in India on day one, if the pitch starts turning, people start talking about ‘Puff of dust! Puff of dust!’ There’s so much crack here on the pitch. People are not looking at that.”
Rohit highlighted the match referees and a selection of the ratings that venues obtained during the World Cup that was hosted in India last year. “I think it’s important that we stay neutral everywhere we go,” Rohit declared. “Most notably the match officials.” It is important for certain match referees to monitor their field ratings. It’s extremely vital.
During the recently concluded two-Test series, South Africa did not bowl any spin. It was dismissed for 19 overs by India in the opening Test, and for the entirety of the second innings. Rohit vehemently opposed this, questioning why a pitch that appears to bowl is deemed substandard compared to one that appears to seam.
“Honestly, I would like to see how the pitches are rated,” Rohit said. “I want to see that. Whatever… that chart, I would love to see it, how they rate the pitches, because Mumbai, Bangalore, Cape Town, Centurion, all different venues, overhead conditions are different. The pitches deteriorate quite fast when the sun is beating down that hard on the pitch.
“And in India as well, we know that the conditions in India will spin without a doubt, but obviously people don’t like it because it spins from day one. But that’s not the point. If the ball seams from ball one, that’s okay, right, for everyone? That’s not fair. The ball starts spinning from ball one, it should be okay, in my opinion.
“Otherwise, you stay neutral, and you start rating these kinds of pitches also bad, because if you want the ball only to seam and not turn, in my opinion, that is absolutely wrong. So that’s my judgement, that’s my opinion on it. I’ll stick by it because I’ve seen enough of cricket now and I’ve seen enough of how these match referees and the ICC looks into these ratings. I have no issues in how they want to rate, but stay neutral to everything that you do.”
