Indian experience has changed Lyon
I BELIEVE PITCH PREPARATION SHOULD BE THE SOLE DOMAIN OF ONE PERSON — THE CURATOR OR GROUNDSMAN
One of the big changes in Test cricket in the era of media saturation has been the amount of talking/ predicting done by competitors in the lead up to a series.
Never is this more evident than in an Ashes series and one of the big talking points leading into the 2017-18 version was discussion surrounding the venue. The G ab ba to ir, as it is now commonly referred to by locals in the hope this will lead to the slaughtering of England, was the focal point of much of what really amounted to trash talking.
The G ab ba has become an Australian fortress to the point where the home side hasn’ t been beaten at the ground since 1988, the last remnants of the West Indies dominant period. Throughout the bulk of this remarkably successful period one man, Kevin Mitchell junior, has been in charge of the surface at the Gabbatoir.
SLOWER PITCH
In his 27 years of preparing the Gabba, Mitchell has been a reliable source of information regarding the pitch. A fine curator, Mitchell predicted the pitch would be slow on the opening day and provide a little seam movement for the faster bowlers. This was in contrast to the vocal storm in the lead up to the match suggesting this fast, bouncy surface would rev ive memories of Mitchell Johnson’ s blistering pace that lead to England’s unsightly demise in 2013-14.
The contrast was so great it was off-spinner Nathan Lyon who provided as many headaches for the England bats men as any of the trio of fast men.
The slower than expected Gabba pitch also re-enforced the need for a balanced attack to cover all eventualities. This is why Lyon has become such a valuable member of Steve Smith’ s outfit and will play a crucial role in this Ashes contest.
The vast improvement in Lyon’ s self-belief can be put down to his “Indian experience”. Ever since Lyon bowled Australia to victory over India in a highly exciting and emotional contest at the Adelaide Oval in 2014-15, his stocks have been on the rise. He followed that career-changing 12-wicket performance with a couple of valuable contributions in India in 2016-17, which have helped him become a more complete spinner.
BUCKING TREND
The slowness of the Gabba pitch on the opening day also bucked a recent trend of home teams receiving specially prepared surfaces that suit their needs.
In Australia, the curator has more autonomy than in other parts of the world and any request to provide a particular surface is likely to be met with a curt: “Get stuffed”.
I believe international pitch preparation should be the sole domain of one person -- the curator or groundsman. The better ones I’ ve seen have as much pride in their performance as players and they aim to prepare a surface that provides good cricket and a result late on the final day.
Mitchell has regularly done that by providing pitches that give every player an opportunity to shine.
His is a great example of why the best Test matches are played on surfaces that give some encouragement to the bowlers.