IND vs SL | Pitch used for Bangalore Test rated ‘below average’ by ICC

India recently won a two-match Test series at home against Sri Lanka with a clean sweep. The second Test of the series was played at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore and the contest was wrapped up in three days. India won by a huge margin of 238 runs and Rohit Sharma won his first Test series as full-time captain with clean sweep. 

However, the pitch used for the match is rated as ‘below average’ by ICC. Match Referee Javagal Srinath rated it such and the venue has received one demerit point. 

“The pitch offered a lot of turn on the first day itself and though it improved with every session, in my view, it was not an even contest between bat and ball,” Srinath mentioned in his report according to ICC. 

There was a considerable amount of turn on the surface from day 1. According to the revised ICC Pitch and Outfield Monitoring Process, pitches rated as below average receive one demerit point while three and five demerit points are assigned to venues whose pitches are marked as poor and unfit respectively. 

“Demerit points remain active for a rolling five-year period and if it accumulates five demerit points or more, it is suspended from hosting any international cricket for a period of 12 months,” ICC said in its release. 

With the victory, India jumped to Number 4 in the World Test Championship Standings.