New Delhi: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has released the pitch ratings for the recently-concluded India vs England Test series. The five-match series ended in a 2-2 draw with both sides winning two Tests each while the fourth Test in Manchester ending in a draw. Out of all the five venues used for the series, just a single venue has been rated good by the global governing body.
With Headingly in Leeds have an exceptional surface, none of the other four pitches managed to earn the highest ‘very good’ rating from the ICC. All the pitches across the venues possessed batting-friend nature with the batters from both the sides coming up with big scores. This also became a topic of debate as after being 1-2 down, India bounced back to level the series with batters exhibition highlighting the series. In the fourth Test in Manchester, India batted for nearly two full days.
ICC pitch-rating for Anderson–Tendulkar Trophy
The pitch for the first Test in Leeds was deemed very good and the outfield was also deemed the same. For the second Test in Edgbaston, Birmingham, ICC rated the pitch as satisfactory and the outfield as very good. The pitch review for the third Test at iconic Lord’s was satisfactory while outfield was deemed very good. For the fourth Test match at Old Trafford, Manchester, pitch was satisfactory and outfield was very good.
Meanwhile, the ratings for the 5th and final Test at the Kennington Oval are yet to be confirmed. While the pitch for all the venues had varied results, with just Leeds getting very good, the outfield at all the four venues was deemed very good by the ICC. England took an early lead in the series by winning the opener while India bounced back in the second Test to level the series. The third Test gave England a 2-1 lead as India narrowly slipped while the fourth Test, which was draw, kept the result as such. The decider helped India level the series.