Ahead of fourth Test, Ahmedabad pitch pictures reveal big ‘dilemma’

For the most part of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy, pitches have dominated the discussions. While the first two wickets were rated ‘average’ by the International Cricket Council (ICC), the ‘poor’ rating for the Indore pitch has intensified the debate over the nature of the wicket. Ahead of the fourth and final Test between India and Australia, the pitch at the Narendra Modi Stadium is the center of attention. But, it seems the nature of the pitch is yet to be decided.

Some pictures have come to the fore from the stadium but the Australian camp has not been able to decide its strategy for the must-win match. Although the match is still a few days away, the curators are reported to have received no instructions from the Indian team management or the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) regarding pitch preparation. There seems to be a ‘crisis’ in the Indian camp as to what kind of pitch they want to prepare.

Here are some pictures from the Narendra Modi Stadium:

Real confusion in Australian call on which pitch is being prepared at Narendra Modi Stadium pic.twitter.com/s2gzc4Z0fU

— Peter Lalor (@plalor) March 7, 2023

First glimpse of the Ahmedabad pitch for the 4th Test match between India vs Australia. pic.twitter.com/CwlcN5LOht

– Cricketman 2 (@ImTanujSingh) March 7, 2023

It seems that a decision is yet to be taken on which pitch will be used for the fourth Test. They’re covering two bars at the moment #INDvAUS pic.twitter.com/DgX6YF9JXA

— Louis Cameron (@LouisDBCameron) March 7, 2023

“We have not received any instructions from the Indian team management and our local curators are preparing a normal track, as we have always done during the season,” a state association source was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

“Obviously, (over the last few days) the BCCI’s ground and pitch committee gives instructions to the local curators… but, of course, from our side, our effort is to prepare a good Test match pitch.”

After losing the first two Tests, Australia staged a spectacular comeback in the third Test at Indore, defeating India to reduce the deficit to 1–2.

It has also been reported that due to the ‘poor’ rating of the Indore pitch, the ‘rank-turner’ is unlikely to be ready for the fourth Test in Ahmedabad.

All three Tests of the series went well within the first three days. The goal is not to let this happen for the fourth time in a row.

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