India cricket team captain Rohit Sharma revealed that the team will get to practice on freshly prepared pitches at the MCG as they gear up for IND vs AUS Boxing Day contest. Earlier on Monday, head curator Matt Page had stated that the ground staff would only prepare a fresh pitch three days before the contest. With the series currently poised 1-1, the game in Melbourne will determine in whose favour will the Border-Gavaskar Trophy go to.
India to get real taste of MCG pitch today
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Rohit said that the team was previously training on surfaces that were mostly used for Big Bash League (BBL) matches. He noted that the team would train accordingly after taking into account how the wicket behaves.
“Those pitches which we trained on, were used pitches, think they were used for the Big Bash League. I think today is the only day, where we are going to get fresher ones. So we’ll see how the wicket plays, and then train accordingly,” Rohit Sharma said.
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MCG head curator Matt Page claimed that all good bowlers get excited when they visit Melbourne due to what the surface has to offer. He admitted that while the pitch might not be as racy as the surfaces in Perth and Brisbane, the pitch in MCG had managed to add some pace to it in the recent years, making contests more interesting. Further, Page added that fast bowlers will get excited to bowl at the MCG, while also stating that the surface would be prepared according to the weather conditions.
“All the good bowlers get excited when they come here now. It gets through well for us. We’re never going to be as quick as Perth and Brisbane, but over the last few years we’ve managed to get some pace in it, which has created that excitement,” MCG chief curator Page said.
