Ricky Ponting finds use of brand new pitch for Afghanistan vs South Africa semi-final ‘strange’

More than the movement on offer, Ponting was particularly unhappy with uneven bounce that was witnessed in the semi-final between Afghanistan and South Africa

Naveen-ul-Haq an teammate Fazalhaq Farooqi walk off the field after Afghanistan were dismissed for 56 runs during the men's T20 World Cup semifinal against South Africa at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad and Tobago on Thursday. (AP Photo)

The pitch at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy, which was used for the first semi-final of the T20 World Cup on Wednesday and saw Afghanistan crash to their lowest ever T20I total, has come under sharp focus. In a tournament where pitches in the US leg of the matches came under intense scrutiny for being underprepared, even in the Caribbean leg some of the tracks have been hard to score off. However, in the new pitch used for the semifinal, apart from seam movement, the unpredictability of the bounce made it all the more challenging for the batsmen from both sides.

During the pitch report it was evident that the grass cover would aide movement. And pointing to the cracks on offer, former Australia captain Ricky Ponting suggested that bounce or lack of it could well be a factor. And it turned out to be true as South Africa’s seamers capitalised on the conditions and take them through to their maiden World Cup final appearance.

“It seems strange to me that you’ll use a brand new wicket for a semifinal one that you’ve actually got no idea about how it’s going to play. We heard the preparation for this wicket started about a week and a half,” Ponting told the host broadcaster.