Reading a Cricket Pitch

Bernard Shaw once said, 'Cricket is a game played by 22 fools and watched by 22000 fools.' However cricket is one of the finest sports that involves tremendous amount of skill, stamina, expertise and patience. One of the key ingredients of an absorbing cricket match is the pitch on which the sport is played.

A cricket pitch is 22 yards long and 10 feet wide. The nature of this cricket pitch is extremely important and no wonders, the captains of either side spend hours analyzing the pitch and deciding the best team combination.

Here are a few tips that might be helpful for you to know before you play cricket.

Grassy pitch: If the track is grassy, it is a good indicator that it will suit fast bowling. It is believed that grass produces some erratic movement to the ball after pitching which makes batting a touch difficult than normal. The perfect ally for a green wicket is the cloudy skies giving the perfect conditions for fast bowlers to flourish. Overcast conditions favor swing while a green wicket assists seam, so together they can create havoc for batsmen.

Brown pitch: You are most likely to encounter such pitches either in the subcontinent or in the Caribbean Islands. It is most likely to favor the batsmen as they offer very little assistance to the fast bowlers or spinners. Slow bowlers or medium slow bowlers who rely more on line and length than any special skill are more likely to prosper in such conditions.

Dusty pitch: Dusty pitches are spinner's paradise. They offer low or uneven bounce and often the ball does not come on to the bat. The footmarks and the cracks are very helpful to the spinners and the gifted spinners can literally torment the batsmen with spin, turn and bounce.

Synthetic pitch: On odd occasions, you might be playing on a turf where the entire playing field is similar. Synthetic pitches are bouncier and faster than normal pitches. Skidders and wrist spinners will enjoy bowling on synthetic turfs as the bowl tends to hurry off the surface.