How can you tell if a pitch is good or bad for batting?

[Rob51852]

Hi,

We can listen to pitch reports and look at the pitch pre-game but these aren't always accurate and pitches can change during games.

How can we tell how the pitch is playing based in what's happening out in the middle?

 

[Starfighter]

Watching the match helps immensely.

 

[TheJediBrah]

Depends how many runs I make. If I struggle then the pitch is hard for batting. If I make a lot of runs the pitch is still hard for batting but I was just so good that I succeeded despite that.

However if the opposition then go in to bat and make runs then the pitch has flattened out, especially if someone I don't like make runs.

 

[Gob]

Should be perfectly balanced. Not too much grass or too much moisture

That's what she said

 

[Burgey]

How can we tell how the pitch is playing based in what's happening out in the middle?

These things tend to vary a bit across venues and countries depending on conditions.

But as a general guide, have a look at the carry of the ball to the keeper and see if it’s pretty consistent. If a keeper is taking balls of similar pace and length at different heights it’s often a sign the pitch is a bit two paced (ball coming off at slightly different speeds), which can in turn make it hard to score freely on.

Sometimes that can reflect a groundsman leaving some moisture in it so it doesn’t break up over five days, which is when you’ll hear comms sometimes say “it will get better for batting on days two and three.” That’s sometimes the case out here anyway.

In NZ or England where generally the climate is a bit damper, the natural conditions might mean the decks are like their players - a bit soft on top, and the ball will move a bit sideways more than in drier places like Aus.

Things are so variable, but imo inconsistent pace (and therefore bounce) off the deck is harder to bat on than a deck that’s going sideways a bit. Obviously if it’s ragging or a complete green top it’s different, but I always found it harder to get into a batting rhythm on a two paced deck than I did one moving around at a consistent pace. May well be an individual thing, but it’s just how I found it.

 

[Burgey]

Ok

 

[honestbharani]

These things tend to vary a bit across venues and countries depending on conditions.

But as a general guide, have a look at the carry of the ball to the keeper and see if it’s pretty consistent. If a keeper is taking balls of similar pace and length at different heights it’s often a sign the pitch is a bit two paced (ball coming off at slightly different speeds), which can in turn make it hard to score freely on.

Sometimes that can reflect a groundsman leaving some moisture in it so it doesn’t break up over five days, which is when you’ll hear comms sometimes say “it will get better for batting on days two and three.” That’s sometimes the case out here anyway.

In NZ or England where generally the climate is a bit damper, the natural conditions might mean the decks are like their players - a bit soft on top, and the ball will move a bit sideways more than in drier places like Aus.

Things are so variable, but imo inconsistent pace (and therefore bounce) off the deck is harder to bat on than a deck that’s going sideways a bit. Obviously if it’s ragging or a complete green top it’s different, but I always found it harder to get into a batting rhythm on a two paced deck than I did one moving around at a consistent pace. May well be an individual thing, but it’s just how I found it.

tl;dr - Ball is easier to hit for batsmen if the bounce and pace off the wicket (once the ball pitches, that is) remains true.

Expanding further, its very hard to explain what is an expected pace and bounce off the wicket and it does vary wicket to wicket but in general, like the acceleration on your motorbike, the players have a feel for it. When I played for my school more than 20 years ago, we got to play on actual cricket pitches (not matting ones) for 3 years in a row. So you tend to develop a feel for it. If it varies drastically from the average that you expect, that is when batting becomes tougher.

For some reason over my entire time of watching cricket, people keep calling wickets that help batsmen "good wickets" and depending on where you are from, seamers and turners and even extremely bouncy ones are called "hostile". The batriarchy in cricket is just palpable wherever you look.

 

[Rob51852]

Thanks guys

 

[SillyCowCorner1]

Early in the morning, get up and head to the ball field sometimes with toothbrush or a stick of black sage in my mouth. Since it’s a home game for us all the guys would assemble in the middle of the ground to help prepare the pitch.

Craters in the pitch will be patched up.
Some of us would form a bucket brigade to get water to the pitch from the nearby canal.
A couple of us would push the roller up from the boundary line and towards the square.
The pitch would then get a good soaking of water then rolled for a while....

For the toppings we have:
1. Freshly cut grass from one of the neighbor’s yard next to the ground.
2. Sawdust
3. Fine rice paddy husk
Or we just leave it naked.

The pitch that is prepared with the sawdust is usually the park easiest to bat on.
The grass topping obviously helps the pacers early on but batting becomes easier in the second innings.
The rice paddy husk topping is a wicket from hell. Sometimes the ball would move like a bull in heat and hit you in the wrong areas.

The naked pitch is the closest thing we have to a dustbowl.

 

[Kirkut]

Early in the morning, get up and head to the ball field sometimes with toothbrush or a stick of black sage in my mouth. Since it’s a home game for us all the guys would assemble in the middle of the ground to help prepare the pitch.

Craters in the pitch will be patched up.
Some of us would form a bucket brigade to get water to the pitch from the nearby canal.
A couple of us would push the roller up from the boundary line and towards the square.
The pitch would then get a good soaking of water then rolled for a while....

For the toppings we have:
1. Freshly cut grass from one of the neighbor’s yard next to the ground.
2. Sawdust
3. Fine rice paddy husk
Or we just leave it naked.

The pitch that is prepared with the sawdust is usually the park easiest to bat on.
The grass topping obviously helps the pacers early on but batting becomes easier in the second innings.
The rice paddy husk topping is a wicket from hell. Sometimes the ball would move like a bull in heat and hit you in the wrong areas.

The naked pitch is the closest thing we have to a dustbowl.

Sounds like Sabina Park.

 

[SillyCowCorner1]

Sounds like Sabina Park.

Nope. This is Cow Dam Cricket Club ground.

 

[Migara]

It's very much like *****. You never know till you play it.