Just half of a day ahead of the historic face-off between India and England for the one-off Test Match in Bristol, the England Captain Heather Knight has disappointments concerning the ascertaining of a ‘used pitch’ to host the Indian side, that too in an event so fresh after an exiled span of seven years.
Just a night ahead of the Test to be played in Bristol’s County Ground, the English captain, Knight unveiled the staleness of the pitch that was previously used the last Friday for the Gloucestershire’s T20 Blast fixture against Sussex and remarked on the situation as “not ideal”. “We’d much prefer to be on a fresh one but it is what it is. We found out last week, which obviously we tried to get changed, but it was a little bit too late for that to happen,” said Knight.
And further went on to escalate the disheartening fact that is capable of shaking the cricketing spirit, “It’s unfortunate, it’s not ideal, we’d much rather be on a fresh one, but we don’t know how it’s going to play yet. It still could play very well. Generally, at Bristol you look at the deck, sometimes it looks not great but actually plays brilliantly. So yeah, look, it’s not ideal but it is what it is and we’re obviously going to have to perform as best we can on the wicket we’re given.”
To note on a serious deal of matters and moments, it is not the first time an incident has been caught like this. A Taunton pitch was used in 2019 for the Men’s World Cup which was again replanted six weeks later to be played upon by and for the 2019 Women’s Ashes Test that had splinted too much controversy, at that time too. And hence with no freshness on the wickets, it could hardly impart any assistance to either of the sides and in that turn of events, Australia somewhat managed to retain the Ashes.
“We don’t know how it’s going to play necessarily. Obviously slightly different with it being used but we’re confident we’ve got the squad and the XI that we’re going to pick to win this Test match,” Heather Knight noted and moreover added, “At Taunton there was a lot of talk about the pitch and it didn’t actually do too much so I guess we’re going to have to wait and see and see how it plays. It’s not something that we can change now. There’s no point looking too much into how it will play, we’ll obviously try to adapt as much as we can to the situation and how the wicket plays. We’ve got to go out there now and get our heads round playing on the pitch we’ve been given.”
Final prep 👌#ENGvIND pic.twitter.com/c3R36VuZpD
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 15, 2021
An ECB spokesperson has informed that the pitches for all the white-ball fixture Between India and England would be freshly prepared to maintain the authenticity of the game, except the second T20 that has to be played in Hove where a hybrid pitch will be provided.
“We are all disappointed that the wicket for the LV= Insurance Test match against India will have had 37 overs played on it,” the spokesperson said. “We know that England Women deserve a fresh wicket and we are sorry that we were unable to provide that in this instance. With the Test only being added to the calendar in mid-April, coupled with the lack of available first-class grounds, we knew a fresh TV pitch was going to be a challenge. We accept that this issue shouldn’t have arisen and we will make sure it doesn’t happen in the future.”
In contrast to the Ashes, where the Test is the centre game in a multi-format arrangement, this match starts off India’s visit which additionally incorporates three ODIs and three T20Is. Each white-ball game is worth two focuses for success while four focuses are available to all for triumph in the Test with two each for a draw and one each for no outcome. Women’s Tests are put into extraordinary circumstances and, however much the players say they appreciate them, they are practically general in expressing their agreement that the more limited configurations are the thoroughfares for enhancing the game.
“You obviously want to be entertaining and want to put on a show and show off the best of your skills and the best of women’s cricket,” Heather Knight said. “But our job first and foremost is to try and win and be successful. That’s at the forefront of our mind, and if we can do both at the same time, even better.
She further remarked on an emphasized note, “I think often in women’s cricket, when we’re playing Test matches, we’re judged slightly to a different standard than the men’s game is. I think there’s games that you look at in isolation, a Test matches in the men’s game, that if it was a women’s game it would get looked at differently and judged on a different pedestal and saying it was attritional cricket or whatever, which I hope doesn’t happen this week.”
The skipper 🙌@Heatherknight55 https://t.co/6qM2KbUdiQ pic.twitter.com/6WC92WjAGA
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 14, 2021
Heather Knight is just on the 100th match as the English captain and her eighth Test match, with a glad record in the latter format that includes the highest score of 157 in the 2013 Ashes draw at Wormsley, her second Test appearance. All the more as of late, she had scored 62 and 79 not out against Australia back in 2017, which likewise summed up in a draw.
“As a group of players we want to be successful, we want to win, and obviously if we can entertain whilst that goes on, that’s even better. We certainly don’t want to be known as a boring side and have a draw but our first port of call is to win games of cricket and that’s what we’ll be looking to do this week,” Knight said.
Even added on the fact of her orthodoxy towards the game, “For me personally, it’d be about my mental approach, being able to deal with the things that red-ball cricket throws at you, being able to concentrate for longer and being really tight, and also taking those opportunities to score that you get given. I’m desperate to be successful in Test match cricket because it doesn’t come around very often. I’ve had a little bit of success and will be desperate to have more.”
