Railways vs Punjab game to start afresh after Karnail Singh pitch declared unfit to play

The match between Railways and Punjab will restart on Thursday.

Railways vs Punjab game to start afresh after Karnail Singh pitch declared unfit to play

The second day of the Ranji Trophy game between Railways and Punjab was called off after the surface of the Karnail Singh Stadium in New Delhi was declared unfit and dangerous to play. As decided by match officials, the game will restart on Thursday on a new surface, including a new coin flip and teams.

A total of 22 wickets fell under four sessions in just 103 overs. A Railways’ player expressed his disappointment at the decision to start the game fresh. He stated that the officials could have resumed the game on a new surface. He believes that his side have lost a good chance of winning the game as they were in a commanding position.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyMjP7SwHBM

“They could have repaired the surface and resumed on the third day from where the match was stopped, but the match officials decided to play on a fresh surface. We were in a fantastic position but will possibly lose out on a chance to win because of this decision,” a Railways team official said.

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Not the first time for Karnail Singh Stadium

An unnamed player talked about the unusual behavior of the pitch. He described the surface as a green wicket but the authorities decided that it was too uneven and dangerous to play. He also stated that while some balls hit the gloves, others scooted low at show height from the same pitching spot.

“The pitch was uneven. Some balls hit the gloves, others scooted low at shoe-height from the same spot. It was a green wicket but the match officials decided it was too uneven and inconsistent for play to continue,” a player told ESPNcricinfo. It has also been learnt that early-winter chills and dew have affected the preparations of the surface.

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It is not the first time that the Karnail Singh Stadium’s surface has come under scrutiny. It came under the scanner after the BCCI formed a technical committee to tract poor pitches in 2011. In 2012, the venue was banned from hosting international matches for two years, citing the fact that local curators deliberately put up bad pitches to help local side Railways progress ahead in the tournament.

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