ICC to Give Another Demerit Point to Rawalpindi Pitch?

The mystery surrounding the pitch of the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium was answered in the first session by Pakistan dominating England.

With the series locked at 1-1, England found themselves in a precarious position at lunch on day one of the Rawalpindi decider.

After Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to bat, England went from a promising 56-1 to a shaky 110-5 at the 30-over mark.

The sudden collapse was influenced by an unorthodox opening bowling combination for Pakistan, as off-spinner Sajid Khan and left-arm spinner Noman Ali made history by starting a Test match together in Pakistan for the first time.

They bowled through the entire session, with Sajid claiming 3-55 and Noman 2-53, leaving England in tatters. The nature of the dismissals, particularly that of Ben Duckett raised eyebrows as it was uncharacteristic of the opening session in a Test match.

According to ICC playing conditions, a Test pitch is expected to allow for an even contest between bat and ball, favoring bowlers slightly.

The conditions also state that while early turn on subcontinental pitches is acceptable, excessive uneven bounce in the early stages is not. A pitch should deteriorate naturally as a match progresses, with spin and seam gradually coming into play.

By this very definition, the threat loses all credibility.

Sajid and Noman masterfully used the pitch conditions in Rawalpindi to their advantage, trapping the batters with the spin that was on offer.

There is plenty on the Rawalpindi surface for batters evident by Jaime Smith’s 89 against the same bowling line-up. It could very well be the case of Ben Stokes and England failing to take advantage of batting first.

Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Joe Root, and Ollie Pope all struggled in the second test as well when the surface began to turn.

Demerit points are offered for “Unsatisfactory” or “Unfit” surfaces neither of which applies to the Rawalpindi pitch at this moment. But, given the history of the ground getting demerit points in the past, it would not be a surprise if another one is added to its tally.