After maiden Test, Indore curator walking a different path in this IPL

Indore pitch has traditionally been quite friendly towards batsmen. The first ODI played at the venue saw Virender Sehwag hit 219 against West Indies to take India to a mammoth 418. Since then, the Indore turf has produced some good scores and the last time India played a limited-overs match at the Holkar Stadium, Mahendra Singh Dhoni played a special innings to clinch the win over South Africa.

However, the pitches at the Holkar Stadium being used for the 2017 IPL have made for an even contest between bat and ball till now. Although the scores have been quite decent, the bowlers have also received quite a bit of assistance from the turf.

The moisture in the pitch resulted in a lot of movement for the bowlers early in the game, and thanks to some disciplined bowling performances, the teams batting first in both the matches were unable to get off to a flying start in spite of having a talented top-order.

As a result, both the matches were won by the team batting second. In the first match, Kings XI Punjab easily chased down a target of 149 with 33 balls to spare against Royal Challengers Bangalore. The second match saw KXIP chasing a steeper target, but the result was the same as Glenn Maxwell’s explosive knock clinched the game for the hosts against Rising Pune Supergiant.

The match between Kings XI Punjab and Mumbai Indians will be the last one at Indore’s Holkar Stadium this year and chief pitch curator Samandar Singh believes that they will be able to produce a balanced pitch for the game, which will not change much during the game.

“We are trying our best to produce an even wicket which will remain the same for 40 overs. The wicket should not change much and you can expect an exciting game,” Singh told HT.

At the start of the tournament, there were a lot of reports that the Indore turf will turn out to be another batsman’s paradise, but Singh denied all those reports.

“It is not fair to make a wicket which is suited only for batsmen and while preparing the wicket for tomorrow’s game, we will keep all the factors in mind.”