Oz curators face flak from home pacers

Written By Unknown on Minggu, 04 Januari 2015 | 21.25

SYDNEY: Did the flatter-than-usual pitches in Adelaide, Brisbane and Melbourne lead to Mitchell Johnson's strained hamstring? The Indian batsmen haven't been complaining but both Johnson and teammate Ryan Harris are ruing the lack of juice in the pitches for this series.

The Gabba, in particular, failed to live up to its reputation as a haven for the notoriously bouncing ball, while both Adelaide and Melbourne have drop-in pitches which tend to be on the flatter side.

Ahead of the Test in Sydney, which has traditionally been friendly to batsmen and spinners, Johnson said the flatter pitches had forced his captains to use him for longer spells and he would take up the issue with the team management.

"I've been bowling longer spells. That's been at the back of mind, that I can't go flat out every ball. It's been a big 15 months so it's tough crick et. I'd like to bowl shorter spells."

Johnson, who skipped training with a sore hamstring on Saturday , agreed the nature of the pitches had been a factor. On the unvarying Melbourne's surface, he said, "You like a wicket to break up, that's what you expect from a five-day wicket. It looked like a three-day wicket at the end of it.It happened in Adelaide as well.Obviously we had the footmarks there, which was helpful for Nathan Lyon, but the middle of the wicket has been disappointing."

Harris on Saturday lent weight to Johnson's tirade, saying, "He (Johnson) was along the right path going on about the wickets. I don't think the wickets have been fast and bouncy. We've got results in two of the Test matches but as a bowling group we're always going to say we need a bit more bounce and a bit more grass. Not having that is frustrating."

Harris, like Johnson, sounded bitter about the fact that Indians tailor-made their wickets for spin on the last tour and the Aussies haven't reciprocated with bouncy surfaces.

"We go to India and get absolute shockers over there so it would be nice to get some green tops over here," said Harris. Johnson, who is doubtful for the Sydney Test, went along, saying, "We lost four-nil over there (India) on some pretty ordinary wickets. We were hoping for them to come over here and play on some good, bouncy wickets."

Cricket Australia's decision to share some cricketing venues with Aussie Rules football, it seems, may have altered the traditional nature of the pitches. That doesn't, however, explain the unthreatening nature of the Gabba surface in this series.

The Aussies are toying with the idea of including two spinners for Sydney but coach Darren Lehmann seemed confused. "Traditionally it spins, but last year it seamed," he said about the SCG.

Maybe it'll turn out to be more helpful for the pacers than anticipated but Johnson and Harris didn't seem very hopeful. "Even the Gabba isn't the normal Gabba. Wickets have been suited for the batters more than anything," said Johnson.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/followceleb.cms?alias=SCG,Ryan Harris,Nathan Lyon,Mitchell Johnson,Darren Lehmann

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