Jos Buttler, captain of England, conveyed concern regarding the condition of the outfield at the HPCA stadium in Dharamsala. On October 7, Afghanistan’s Mujeeb-Ur-Rahman dove and landed clumsily on one of the venue’s irregular and sparse outfield areas during a match against Bangladesh. On the eve of the second game at the venue, between England and Bangladesh, Buttler said that the outfield is ‘deficient’ and that having to hold yourself back while fielding in a World Cup game is not optimal.
“Yeah a few I think . It’s poor in my opinion,” Buttler said. “Anytime you’re talking about being careful diving or sort of being careful when you’re fielding, it goes against everything you want to be as a team. You know you want to dive through the houses to save a run. That’s obviously not ideal, the way the surface is, the outfield. But we won’t use it as an excuse and we’ll just adapt to it. But yeah, certainly if you feel like you’re having to hold yourself back, it’s not a place you want to be as a team or player, or in a World Cup match.”
Mujeeb was fortunate not to have incurred a serious injury, according to Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott, who expressed similar sentiments immediately after the first match. Mujeeb’s ungainly fall occurred as a result of him slamming his knee into the stony ground, which stirred up some of the soil underneath. A second member of the Afghanistan team management stated that the outfield was not fit for international cricket.
The following day, the entire field was inspected by chief curator Sunil Chauhan and ICC’s independent pitch consultant Andy Atikinson. The venue was approved by both Atkinson and Javagal Srinath, the referee for the England-Bangladesh match, following a protracted process and prolonged discussions. The ICC, however, rated the outfield as merely average.
Buttler regretted that he and his teammates would have to be “careful” while placing their bodies on the line, and he hoped that neither team would suffer any regrettable injuries during the game.
“Injuries can happen at any time, can’t they, on any surface, but I think it’s definitely one where you’re going to have to be a little bit careful, which isn’t what you want to be doing playing for your country. You want to put your body on the line and be trying to save every single run or have confidence in the field.
“So, it’s not as good as it could be or should be, but it’s going to be the same for both teams, and the wicket looks fantastic. So, as I said we’re hungry to get out there and play well, so we won’t be using it as an excuse, we just have to be a bit smart, I think,” he added.
“I think naturally you want to be instinctive in the field. If you see a ball, you want to dive for it. So, it’s unique, I think, to be honest. And I know it’s going to be the same for both teams, but if you’re having to sort of, hold yourself back, you shouldn’t have to feel like that, I don’t think. So yeah, hopefully, fingers crossed, no one on either side picks up an unfortunate injury.
Another area of concern will be the pacers’ run-up area. There are also small divots, which can be disconcerting for bowlers running in.
“I think it’s the same again, about getting a bit of trust. You have guys tearing in and trying to bowl fast and they need that confidence in the run up. It’ll probably take guys a couple of balls to get used to it. But they’re professionals, they’ll adapt,” Buttler said.
