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India tour Pakistan
- Samsung Cup 2004 |
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Blame on me is a lie: Curator Atkinson
LAHORE: There has been a lot of bickering over
the Multan pitch. The people in charge have palmed off the blame on
International Cricket Council-recognised pitch expert Andy Atkinson
for preparing a docile wicket.
The Essex-based consultant cleared the air at the Gaddafi Stadium
yesterday. “A day before the Test, Inzamam-ul-Haq and manager Haroon
Rasheed asked me to remove the grass on the wicket, which I did and
the entire blame came on me.
“All the things attributed to me have been a lie,” said Atkinson who
looked hurt.
He added the Pakistan skipper was “very much worried about the grass
on the wicket,” as Inzamam felt that his batsmen will not be able to
stand up to the Indian bowlers.
“He (Inzamam) said he wants a hard and fast wicket not a seaming
one, so we had to remove the grass.
“Shoaib Akhtar and the other Pakistan bowlers asked me to leave some
grass on the wicket but the captain didn’t want it so I went with
what the captain wanted,” Atkinson said.
Blaming the Pakistan cricketers for putting up a poor show, Atkinson
said, “I did not bowl long hops, I did not play bad shots nor did I
have the bat in the wrong hand while running.”
There were reports here that Atkinson was summoned by Board chief
Shaharyar Khan to Lahore on the second day of the Test to give an
explanation why the wicket had turned out to be so benign when it
should have been the other way round.
He claimed that he was not “summoned” and he flew down to start
preparing the wicket for the second Test that starts on Monday. With
the dust raised in Multan still to settle down, the Pakistan Cricket
Board has barred the media from entering the ground.
“No journalist will be allowed to see the wicket,” was the official
word when one tried to have a close look last evening.
According to sources in the PCB, CEO Ramiz Raja has taken matters
into his own hands and has passed strict orders to the officials not
to make any comments on the wicket.
“He is the final authority on what kind of wicket should be
prepared,” the source said. Atkinson has been working on the strip
since Tuesday. The pitch has fair amount of grass and it has been
watered heavily to support seam movement.
Raja told reporters “The wicket will have bounce for the first two
days and then will settle down.”
But with the sun beating down hard these days, the grass could be
misleading.
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