Lord’s pitch attacked by fungus!
ENGLAND players and supporters at Lord’s this morning will be greeted by an eyesore of a pitch for the series decider against West Indies. Two ‘fairy rings’ have appeared on the pitch, and another seven on the adjacent square, as can be seen in the above picture. The rings are caused by spores from fungus which have formed a discoloured circle around a metre in diameter just short of a good length at the pavilion end. The MCC groundstaff explained yesterday that the issue is a ‘natural phenomenon’ and will not affect play. England captain Joe Root said: ‘We’ll have to see how it plays, but I have no idea whether it will make any difference. ‘Whether it is just a visual blemish or whether it will have an impact, we will have to see.’