'It is bordering on dangerous' - Andy Flower heavily critiques drop-in pitch, outfield at New York

The 34000-capacity arena at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York has come under scrutiny from various cricket pundits due. Experts have voiced a lot of negative opinions regarding the uncanny nature of the surface at the venue, especially due to the choice to utilize a drop-in pitch for hosting T20 World Cup 2024 encounters.

The India-Bangladesh warm-up fixture was the first-ever professional game played at the venue, though an unofficial one. Up until June 06, the Nassau facility has hosted a couple of games. In the Sri Lanka versus South Africa tie, the former side got bundled out for a mere 77, while the opposition took 16 overs to chase. Similar situation was reinforced when Ireland batters faced India a day later, getting bundled out on the cusp of a three-figure total. The opposition batters also faced difficulties in picking the line and lengths, although they were able to successfully chase down the target.

For the uninitiated, Andy Flower, speaking with ESPNcricinfo, strongly criticized the playing surface immediately after the game, asserting that it was unsuitable for hosting an international fixture. The former cricketer remarked that the conditions bordered on hazardous, citing instances of erratic ball behaviour, including instances of the ball keeping low, which made life exceedingly challenging for the batters in the middle.

“That's not a good surface to play an international match on. It is bordering on dangerous. You saw the ball bouncing unusually both ways, skidding low occasionally, but in the main, bouncing unusually high and striking people on the thumb, gloves, helmet, and making life difficult for any batter,” said Flower.

Also Read: Explainer: What are drop-in pitches? Why are they being used in USA in T20 World Cup?

Flower's commentary ensued subsequent to former English skipper, Michael Vaughan's remarks on X following the conclusion of the first innings of the India-Ireland game. Vaughan acknowledged the commendable initiative of promoting cricket in the United States by the organizers. However, Vaughan criticized the decision to subject the less-experienced associate nations to challenging playing conditions. Vaughan deemed it unjust for these teams to compete in such conditions after persevering through numerous struggles and victories to qualify for the esteemed tournament.

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 .. #INDvIRE

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) June 5, 2024