Pitch Preparation Details Revealed For India-Pakistan T20 World Cup 2024 Clash In New York
Published - 19 Jan 2024, 05:46 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 12:25 AM
Adelaide Oval head groundsman Damien Hough explained the process of preparing the pitch for the India-Pakistan clash in the 2024 T20 World Cup. Hough stated that drop-in pitches will be used at Eisenhower Park in New York during the ICC tournament.
India will start their campaign against Ireland in New York, followed by a highly anticipated match against arch-rivals Pakistan at the same venue. If both teams progress well, there’s a possibility of meeting in the semifinals or the final of the marquee tournament.
The Men in Green secured a historic victory over India at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in 2021. However, a year later, India avenged that loss with a classic victory in the Super 12 round of the ICC T20 World Cup 2022 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
India vs Pakistan, T20 World Cup 2024: We’re Really Proud Of Them – Damien Hough
Speaking to Channel 7, Damien Hough said he used some of the trays built in Adelaide and shipped them to Florida, then moved to the new location before the competition.
“It’s a bit tricky, we basically built six of the 10 trays here in Adelaide. We made them modular. We’re really proud of them. We’ve got a couple out of the back that will probably come out here [on Adelaide Oval] next year,” Hough told Channel 7.
“We put them in a shipping container and send them really wherever we want around the world. But they’ve gone over to Florida. And I’ve just come back from a month of work over there putting the trays together, putting the soil in, compacting them and putting the grass on. So we’re in the grow-in phase.”
The drop-in pitches will be used in a temporary 34,000-seat stadium, where eight matches will be played within a 10-day period. Furthermore, an additional six pitches will be set up at the warm-up venue for team training sessions and practice matches in the event.
The Real Work Starts Around The Start Of May – Damien Hough
Damien Hough discussed the upcoming preparations for the New York stadium pitches, with work set to commence in May for the venue. He mentioned the involvement of LandTek in the grow-in phase and outlined strategic trips over the next six months.
“We’ve got a business, a company over there called LandTek that are helping us with the grow-in phase. Then there’s a couple more strategic trips throughout the next six months to do some work on them and then transport them from Florida all the way up to New York where we’ll put them in and prepare them.
“It’s a lot of work that’s gone into it so far. But the real work starts around the start of May. It’ll take two days to transport them up which is quite incredible. Never done that before. So there’s a lot of firsts. And then there’s getting them in the ground.
“Four go into that venue, that pop-up stadium, 34,000-seat stadium. Eight games in 10 days. One of them is Pakistan and India which will be amazing. And then there’s six that go into the warm-up venue with so many teams rotating through and so much training.”
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