Now, Cricket Australia (CA) will build subcontinental-style pitches at the Brisbane-based National Cricket Centre (NCC) to prepare batsman and bowlers to perform better on the subcontinent tracks. Australia's massive defeat to Pakistan in UAE last year has prompted them to go for the new experiment. CA is hopeful that the new measure would benefit their batsman and bowlers immensely.
These 'hybrid tracks', as they are being called, is the brainchild of Dubai's International Global Cricket Academy curator Tony Hemming, an Australian. A hybrid pitch is extremely spin friendly and the estimated cost of preparing one is A$11,000.
These pitches are made of synthetic turf glued on to a concrete slab, with a layer of black soil on top. Water is sprinkled on it and clusters of red hybrid grass allowed to grow through the broken soil to produce unpredictable variation.
"We prepared it last year. The hybrid pitch has been of great help so far. Though it's not exactly like the subcontinent, it is pretty close to it," Troy Cooley , NCC chief coach, said.
"Our boys grow up on fast and bouncy tracks in Australia. We've got to do things differently to produce quality spinners. We've consulted curators from the subcontinent. We want our next generation of players to play good, competitive cricket in all conditions," Cooley, said in Chennai.
"While batting on these pitches, the ball doesn't bounce at all. The new generation of batsmen are learning how to use their feet and counter the unpredictable nature of such tracks," Cooley added.
