‘This pitch is not safe for players’: Irfan Pathan leads former cricketers’ criticism of ‘sub standard’ pitch at Nassau County Cricket stadium – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan and other cricket veterans expressed strong disapproval of the pitch conditions at Nassau County Cricket Stadium during the T20 World Cup encounter between India and Ireland on Wednesday.

The pitch exhibited erratic behavior, with balls bouncing unpredictably from a good length, posing a safety risk to players from both teams.

Pathan was particularly vocal about the sub-standard nature of the pitch, emphasizing that such conditions would be unacceptable in India and would lead to the suspension of the venue from hosting games for an extended period.



“Look, we definitely want to promote cricket in America, but this pitch is not safe for players. If we had a pitch like this in India, a match would never be played there again for a very long time. This pitch is definitely not good. I mean, we are talking about the World Cup here, not even a bilateral series,” Pathan stated on Star Sports.

The match saw India skipper Rohit Sharma retired hurt after a ball unexpectedly rose from a good length and struck him on the right biceps. Rishabh Pant also experienced discomfort when a ball bounced unevenly and hit his elbow.



Former England captain Michael Vaughan shared Pathan’s sentiments, expressing his disapproval of the playing conditions on social media. Vaughan emphasized that playing on such sub-standard surfaces undermines the hard work players put in to qualify for the World Cup.

“Trying to sell the game in the states is great .. love it .. but for players to have to play on this sub standard surface in New York is unacceptable .. You work so hard to make it to the WC then have to play on this,” Vaughan posted on X.



Wasim Jaffer, another former Indian cricketer, also took to social media to criticize the pitch, sarcastically suggesting that it seemed more suited for Test cricket than T20.

“This is an excellent pitch in New York. Provided the idea was to get the American audience hooked on to Test cricket disguised as T20,” Jaffer posted on X.



The poor pitch conditions and slow outfield became a major talking point, raising concerns over player safety and the quality of cricket being showcased in a top-tier ICC event like the T20 World Cup.