ICC extremely unhappy with Newlands pitch, gives brutal rating to IND vs SA 2nd Test track

The second India vs South Africa Test match saw the game end in just two days with only 107 overs being bowled in the whole match. It eventually broke a 91-year-old record to become the shortest Test match in the history of cricket. The Newlands pitch in Cape Town saw a lot of criticism for unpredictable bounce and too much lateral movement. Everyone expected the pitch to face repercussions due to the preparations before the IND vs SA match. Rohit Sharma even called out the International Cricket Council to be neutral while pronouncing the decision on the pitch. Now, ICC has finally announced its rating of the Newlands pitch.

3 things you need to know

• India vs South Africa 2nd Test match lasted only 642 balls
• The pitch at the Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town saw a lot of criticism
• Rohit Sharma called on the ICC to give a rating to the pitch which was neutral

ICC rates Newlands pitch as ‘Unsatisfactory’

The ICC on Monday rated the Newlands pitch 'Unsatisfactory' after the India vs South Africa clash in the World Test Championship that ended on January 4th. ICC Match Referee Chris Broad submitted his report, which expressed the concerns of the match officials, and following the assessment, the Newlands pitch in Cape Town was deemed "unsatisfactory".

“The pitch in Newlands was very difficult to bat on," Broad said. "The ball bounced quickly and sometimes alarmingly throughout the match, making it difficult to play shots. Several batters were hit on the gloves and many wickets also fell due to the awkward bounce.”

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So if a pitch or outfield is rated as substandard, according to the ICC Pitch and Outfield Monitoring Process, that venue is allocated certain demerit points. One demerit point is awarded to venues whose pitches and outfields are rated by the match referee as unsatisfactory. If a venue reaches six demerit points, it is suspended from hosting any international cricket for 12 months. The penalty is 24 months in case of 12 demerit points. These points remain active for a rolling five-year period.

Cricket South Africa have been given 14 days to appeal against the sanction imposed by ICC. 

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IND vs SA: India beat South Africa by 7 wickets in the 2nd Test

South Africa won the toss and elected to bowl first. However, Siraj was in impeccable form as he took 6 wickets to bowl out the hosts for just 55 runs. Indian batters also could not do much as they were bowled out for 153 runs and took an important 98-run lead. In the second innings, Aiden Markram managed to score a hundred for SA despite the conditions and managed to give India a target of 79. Even though batting was difficult on the pitch, India managed to win the Test by seven wickets.