New-look Sabina pitch for S’Africa series
WHEN South Africa arrive for the final game in the five-match limited-overs series on June 3, they will find a Sabina Park pitch with a distinct grass surface, according to Jamaica Cricket Associaton (JCA) interim curator Oneil Cruickshank.
The venue will also host the first match in the three-Test series from June 10-14, and Cruickshank says the aim is to prepare a hard pitch with grass on top to provide an even battle between bat and ball.
“Our intention is to have all the strips fully grassed. That may give some assistance to our faster bowlers, but certainly, it would assist cricket overall.
“We have to ensure that beneath the surface is very hard and compact and my duty is to not give any batsman or bowler any great advantage or disadvantage,” he said
Added Cruickshank: “It may not be as pacy as one that is devoid of grass, but certainly it may keep the fast bowlers interested (because of seam movement) a little longer. You always want even bounce, which is why it’s necessary that we have very heavy roller compaction that will give it that hardness,” he said.
In 1998, the first Test of England’s tour of the West Indies was abandoned after less than an hour because the pitch was deemed dangerous and unfit for play. This led to the entire square being dug up and replaced.
Patrick Gordon, the construction engineer who played a lead role in the rehabilitation of the surface after the 1998 fiasco, resigned as pitch curator in February last year.
Cruickshank said he and his team decided to focus primarily on two of the five strips available on the entire pitch square. These two, which he referred to as pitches number four and five, were renovated by replacing four inches of top surface clay, while the other three strips were “turned over”.
“Four inches were removed from the top of (strips) four and five; the other three we didn’t take out much clay. What we did was to turn it over and then applied new clay surface-wise. But we ensured we used the same clay (from Appleton Estate), so we have no problems of layering and setting the clay together,” he said.
The soil for the entire pitch square at Sabina Park originates from the Appleton Estate in St Elizabeth.
Said he: “.. Pitches four and five are in an advanced stage and are waiting to go through full compression to get them as hard as we would want them. By the end of April they should all have the same look. But all five may not be playing at the same level until May, (though) we are still on target for our international and local programmes.”
He said the heavy rolling would help ensure the grass grows sideways, instead of vertically, and subsequently hold the surface together.
“What it does, the grass, is that it binds the surface so you don’t have a lot of wash-away of the clay. Some people may hear grass and think it’s going to be like the grass on the outfield and some batsmen may feel that once they see grass that it’s something that they cannot bat on,” he said.
When quizzed about what spinners can expect from the wicket, Cruickshank felt certain that just like any other wicket deterioration will set in and the slower bowlers can have an impact.
He said practice sessions, along with the upcoming JCA cricket festival, should provide ample opportunity to gauge the readiness of the strips.