To say that all roads leading to the World Cup final venue —Wankhede Stadium — are secured will be an understatement. And so is the situation inside it. The ground, which produced two good matches in the group stages, is ready to host the biggest match in its history.
To say that all roads leading to the World Cup final venue —Wankhede Stadium — are secured will be an understatement. And so is the situation inside it. The ground, which produced two good matches in the group stages, is ready to host the biggest match in its history.
If it is home to the god of Indian cricket Sachin Tendulkar, opponents Sri Lanka are no strangers here. A commanding 112-run win over New Zealand in the group game, played here a fortnight ago, would surely have given them some confidence. But vice-captain Mahela Jayawardene expressed his surprise over the colour of the strip.
Before hitting the nets for some light batting practice, an astounded Jayawardene quipped: “The last time I came here, there was some grass on the pitch. It looks pure brown now.” His statement didn’t go down well with the Wankhede curator Sudhir Naik.
The former Mumbai player said Jayawardene, by saying this, has shown his lack of knowledge about reading a pitch. “What devil he saw in the pitch to say this,” Naik retorted. “It’s the same sporting track that produced two good games, we haven’t altered them as such,” Naik claimed.
Playing on the home turf of the finalists India, Sangakkara & Co shouldn’t be surprised if a paataa (flat track) is in the offing. But the curator made it clear that he hasn’t made a pitch, doctored to the needs of MS Dhoni’s side. “It has been made according to my and only my instructions, I haven’t been instructed by the Indian team to make it to their liking,” the 65-year-old ground in-charge explained. However, Naik also said that bowlers will not be made to look like mere bowling machines. Spinners, especially, will play a role.
Traditionally, Wankhede has supported slow bowling and Murali-Mendis and Bhajji-Yuvi pair from either side would surely give batsmen some tough times. In the last match played between New Zealand and Sri Lanka, Muralitharan created havoc with his off-spinners taking four for 25.
So will it be a batting-first pitch? Naik refuted from stereotyping his strip. “If there are quality batsmen like Tendulkar, Sehwag, Sangakkara, Jayawardene in each side, chasing any competitive total should not be much of an issue,” Naik explained. With over a billion eyeballs set to witness the grand finale, Naik, surely, would not want to disappoint anyone.
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