Australia captain Pat Cummins confirmed that their World Cup 2023 final against India at the world's largest cricket stadium, Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, will be played on a used pitch. Cummins was the only one who did not make much of the reports claiming that India had switched the pitch in Mumbai at the last minute before their semi-final against New Zealand to suit their spinners and he pretty much maintained the same stance ahead of the summit clash on Sunday.
Cummins said it will be the same pitch that India played against Pakistan on October 14. "Yeah, just had a look. I'm not a great pitch reader, but it looked pretty firm. They've only just watered it, so yeah, give it another 24 hours and have a look, but it looks like a pretty good wicket," Cummins said in the pre-match press conference on Saturday.
When asked if he could confirm if it was a used wicket or not, the lanky fast bowlers said: "Yes, I think Pakistan played someone there."
The only match that Pakistan played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in this World Cup was against India. That pitch was a pretty hard one but the ball was stopping a bit as the game progressed. Pakistan got off to a good start in that match but from a strong position, they were rocked by Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj in the middle overs to get bowled out for 191. In reply, India of to a blistering start thanks to Rohit Sharma's fearless hitting in the powerplay. Shreyas Iyer also scored a half-century as chased down the target in 30.3 overs with 7 wickets in the bank.
If the pitch behaves in a similar manner then the toss could once again turn out to be a crucial factor as the side winning the toss would want to field first to make use of better batting conditions under lights. Both India and Australia, however, have tremendous pace attacks to make the new ball talk.
{{/usCountry}}If the pitch behaves in a similar manner then the toss could once again turn out to be a crucial factor as the side winning the toss would want to field first to make use of better batting conditions under lights. Both India and Australia, however, have tremendous pace attacks to make the new ball talk.
{{/usCountry}}Cummins said the secret to success in Indian conditions for a fast bowler is to find the right balance between slower balls, bouncers and seam-up deliveries.
"I think, similar to a lot of ODI cricket in general the ball obviously swings for a few overs but after that there's not much swing, so you've got to try and create wickets in other ways. It's not necessarily catches behind the wicket like you might have in Australia. You've got to be brave with some of the balls you use, slower balls, bouncers, you've got to find that balance between mixing it up but also not go chasing too much. I think we've struck that balance pretty well and at least over here in India a lot of time by the end of the innings, things like cutters work perhaps better than it does elsewhere in the world," he said.