ICC rates Perth pitch used for Ashes opener ‘very good’:Match ended in two days after 19 wickets fell on Day 1

The pitch for the two-day Ashes Test played at Perth Stadium has been rated ‘Very Good’ by the ICC. Match referee Ranjan Madugalle’s report stated that the ball came easily reached the bat well on the pitch, there wasn’t much movement, and the bounce was consistent. Therefore, both batsmen and bowlers got equal opportunities. Australia won the Perth Test by 8 wickets Australia had won the Perth Test by 8 wickets. For the first time in the 137-year history of the series, a match ended within just 2 days. This was the second shortest completed Test played in Australia (in 847 balls) and became the shortest Ashes Test since 1888. After the match ended so quickly, the pitch of the Perth Test was being discussed throughout the world of cricket. Everyone was also waiting for the ICC’s rating. Fast bowlers dominated throughout the match In this match, fast bowlers dominated from the very first day. A total of 19 wickets fell on the first day itself. From Australia, Mitchell took 7 wickets for 58 runs in England’s first innings. Debutant Brendon Doggett got 2 wickets, while Scott Boland got 1 wicket. From England, Ben Stokes took 5 wickets. Besides him, Brydon Carse and Jofra Archer secured two wickets each. On the first day, England was 160/5 until tea, but the team collapsed for 172 runs before the session ended. In response, Australia’s innings also faltered, and by the end of the day, their score was 123/9. 13 wickets fell on the second day, Head scored a century On the second day, 3 Australian and 10 English wickets fell. Australia, playing from 129, could only score 132 runs in their first innings. Meanwhile, England’s second innings ended at 164 runs by tea. Scott Boland took four wickets for Australia. Additionally, Brendon Doggett and Mitchell Starc took 3 wickets each. Australia achieved the target of 205 runs in just 29 overs. Due to Usman Khawaja’s injury, Travis Head was sent to open and he played an aggressive innings of 123 runs off 83 balls, while Marnus Labuschagne played an unbeaten innings of 31 runs. After the match, Australia captain Steve Smith said- The pitch became the best to play on by the evening of the second day, just like it happened in the Perth Test against India last year. Cricket Australia happy with pitch rating Regarding this decision by the ICC, CA’s Cricket Chief James Allsop said that the rating given to the Perth Test pitch proves that there was an equal contest between bat and ball here. Allsop said that both teams had excellent fast bowlers and the way the match was played, it ended in just 2 days. Although everyone was disappointed that play did not happen on the third and fourth days, fans who came to the stadium saw a lot of excitement in the 2 days of play. Now we are looking forward to an exciting match under lights in the Gabba Test. Why was the result so quick? The pitch was new initially, so fast bowlers got help. But as the match progressed, the bounce and carry became consistent. Because of this good balance, the ICC gave it a ‘very good’ rating. This is how the ICC rates the pitch After the conclusion of any Test match, the ICC issues ratings for the pitch and outfield, the responsibility for which lies with the match referee. In the Perth Test match, former Sri Lankan player Ranjan Madugalle was in the role of referee, who gave a very good rating to the Perth Test match pitch. According to this, on this pitch, where good bounce was observed, there was an equal contest between the batsman and the bowler. It is worth noting that a total of 32 wickets fell in two days of play in the Perth Test, and this is the second-shortest Test match ever played in Australia. Cricket Australia suffers a loss of Rs 30-40 crore With the match ending in just two days, tickets for the third and fourth days became useless, causing Cricket Australia a loss of approximately 3-4 million Australian dollars (about Rs 30-40 crore). Despite this, CA official James Allsop is satisfied. He said that the ICC gave the pitch a ‘very good’ rating, which validates our assessment. There was a good balance between bat and ball on the pitch. It was disappointing for fans not to see a full three-four day match, but the cricket played was extremely exciting. Record viewers tuned in on TV, and we hope this will inspire more children to play cricket. Next Match: Day-Night Test in Brisbane The next Ashes Test will be a day-night match at the Gabba (Brisbane), starting on Thursday. Curator Dave Sandurski said, ‘The pitch has a bit of grass and heat, it can dry quickly, but we will try to make the match last for 5 days. We want batsmen, fast bowlers and spinners, everyone to get an opportunity.’ Gabba received a below-average rating for finishing in two days It is worth remembering that in 2022-23, the match against South Africa at Gabba also finished in 2 days, and that pitch received a “below average” rating, along with a demerit point. Since then, there have been no issues with the pitches there.