Photo : Collected
The pitch in Cape Town, where India defeated South Africa in five sessions of a Test match last week, has received one demerit point after being assessed "unsatisfactory" by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on Tuesday (9 January).
The Newlands match took place over 642 balls, and India won the shortest test ever to have a winner, surpassing Australia's 1932 656-ball triumph over South Africa. This victory even the series.
Playing in their final match, South Africa captain Dean Elgar and his Indian rival Rohit Sharma both thought the pitch was subpar, and many would argue the venue got away with a relatively minimal punishment.
According to an ICC release, match referee Chris Broad noted, "The pitch in Newlands was very difficult to bat on."
"The ball bounced quickly and sometimes alarmingly throughout the match, making it difficult to play shots."A number of batters were struck on the gloves, and the uncomfortable bounce also caused many wickets to fall."
Hosts Cricket South Africa have 14 days to appeal against the sanction.
As per the ICC regulations, a venue that receives a "unsatisfactory" rating will lose one demerit point, but if it is deemed "unfit" based on the governing body's pitch and outfield monitoring process, it would lose three points.
For a rolling five-year period, these points will be valid.
A venue loses its ability to hold any international cricket matches for a year if it receives six demerit points during that time.
Messenger/Sun Yath
