The captain of the Sydney Thunder, Chris Green, defended the pitch at the home venue in Sydney, following Ricky Ponting‘s description of the Showground wicket as “substandard.” Following Thunder’s seven-wicket loss to the Perth Scorchers in the current Big Bash League on January 8, controversy broke out. The wicket is supposed to create a sluggish, spinning surface, which has resulted in the lowest scoring percentages throughout the competition. The Thunders could only muster 137 for eight runs as Ashton Agar took two wickets. With five balls remaining, however, the Scorchers managed to chase down the subpar target.
Canberra should be named Thunder’s permanent home stadium, according to Ponting, who was a part of Seven’s commentary throughout the game. Interestingly, Canberra’s Manuka Oval is the home venue for two of the Thunder’s current BBL games.
Chris Green said they intended to play at the ground in western Sydney in the meantime.
“This is where we like to play; we’re the Sydney Thunder. This is our territory. We’re from here, in the west of Sydney. A permanent transfer down here [to Canberra] would be terrible for me. I enjoy playing and staying at home with my family, and they enjoy seeing me play. According to ESPNCricinfo, Chris Green stated, “This is our home base.”
The right-armer continued by brushing off the allegation that the Showground pitch had been a persistent problem. All it takes, he said, is getting “to those conditions better.”
“This is preferable to many wickets across the nation. It just comes down to becoming more adapted to those circumstances. The weather spoiled last year’s 200-game finals that we had here. This year’s sold-out Sixers game was made less enjoyable by the rain. It’s going to come down to the final ball, which is an exciting match, if we score ten more runs or roughly five fewer wides tonight. Thus, I take issue with their remarks. We can’t just put on a fantastic wicket and have 220 plays, as it evaluates one aspect of expertise; however, this requires another aspect of skill,” the 30-year-old continued.
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