India are taking on Australia in the ongoing World Test Championship (WTC) 2023 at the Oval. However, the Oval pitch has shown signs of being dangerous on multiple occasions.
In the eighth over of the game, India speedster Mohammed Siraj surprised Marnus Labuschagne by getting a ball to zip off a good length. It hit Labuschagne on his hand forcing him to lose grip of his bat. Deliveries like that ending up giving blows to the batters of both the teams have only increased as the match progressed.
Team India star batsman Virat Kohli was out to a delivery that bounced a lot more than expected. Veteran batsman Ajinkya Rahane was hit on his fingers late on the second day of the match. Wicketkeeper-batsman KS Bharat coped with a blow on his elbow. Pace all-rounder Shardul Thakur got a nightmarish time against Pat Cummins on the third day. He was hit on the right hand twice in the same over. Labuschagne lost the grip on his bat in the second innings once again.
The ball has reared from a good length every now and then with the odd ball keeping a tad low catching the batters by surprise. Despits having a useful partnership of 109 with Rahane, Thakur called the Oval pitch ‘underprepared’.
“I think there is an area from where the ball is coming up, there is a little grass around the crack and the length is such that batsmen can’t leave the deliveries easily. You have to play committedly because we have seen many balls kept down and I mean that is an area of good length. So that is the area where the batsmen can’t immediately see and leave the ball. You have to play it. And if it bounces from there then good luck for the batsmen,” said Thakur.