Cricket News, 10 March: Rawalpindi pitch gets 'below average' rating, more

Mar 10, 2022

Cricket News, 10 March: Rawalpindi pitch gets 'below average' rating, more Image

Pujara to play for Sussex in County Championship 2022

Cheteshwar Pujara will join Sussex in 2022 as an overseas player for the County Championship 2022 One-Day Cup. He will replace Travis Head, who made himself unavailable due to his international commitments. Pujara has earlier represented Nottinghamshire, Yorkshire and Derbyshire in the County Championship. Sussex has also signed Mohammad Rizwan.

'I am excited and honoured to be a part of the historic Sussex County Cricket Club for the upcoming season,' Pujara said. 'I do look forward to joining up with the Sussex family soon and be a part of its rich cricketing history. Over the years I have always enjoyed my time in the UK playing county cricket, so eagerly looking forward to the new stint and hope to contribute to the club's success.'

Narine to play for Surrey in T20 Blast

Surrey has roped in Sunil Narine for T20 Blast 2022. Narine will join Surrey soon after the completion of the 2022 IPL, where he will play for Kolkata Knight Riders. Narine brings an experience of over 300 T20s. Other than being a masterful spinner, he is also an explosive batter.

'I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to play for Surrey in the Vitality Blast this year; one of the few competitions around the world I've not experienced in my career,' stated Narine after the signing. 

Rawalpindi Pitch gets 'below average' rating

Match referee Ranjan Madugalle rated the Rawalpindi pitch, where the first Test match of Australia's historic tour to Pakistan was played, 'below average'. Only 14 wickets fell over the course of five days, as it provided nothing to both fast bowlers and spinners.  

'The character of the pitch hardly changed over the course of five days and that there has been no deterioration apart from the bounce getting slightly lower,' Madugalle's report read. 'The pitch did not have a great deal of pace and bounce in it for the seamers nor assisted the spinners as the match progressed.'

New Zealand beat India by 62 runs

New Zealand beat India by 62 runs at Seddon Park in Hamilton in the 2022 Women's World Cup. Chasing 261, India were bowled out for 198. Barring Harmanpreet Kaur, who scored 71 in 63 balls, none of the Indian batters stepped up to the occasion. For New Zealand, Lea Tahuhu and Amelia Kerr picked up three wickets each.

Earlier, Amelia (50) and Amy Satterthwaite (75) propelled New Zealand to 260/9. For India, Pooja Vastrakar took 4-34. 

100% stadium capacity allowed for Bengaluru Test

The M. Chinnaswamy Stadium has been allowed to admit crowds at 100% of the stadium capacity for the second Test match between India and Sri Lanka. The match will begin on 12 March. Only 50% crowd was allowed for the opening Test in Mohali.

'Considering the high volume of response and since there are no further restrictions for spectators, KSCA will be opening up sale of tickets for full capacity of the stadium,' stated an official release from the association.