South Africa limped past Sri Lanka in the first World Cup match on a pitch described as “not ideal for T20 cricket” at the newly-created Eisenhower Park near New York.
The Proteas bowled out Sri Lanka – who had surprisingly chosen to bat first in unknown conditions – for just 77, with Anrich Nortje taking four for seven. Sri Lanka’s top scorer, the usually free-scoring Kusal Mendis, made 19 from 30 balls.
That South Africa would win never really seemed in doubt, and they got home four down with 22 balls to spare. Run-scoring proved difficult again, with Tristan Stubbs scoring 13 off 28 balls.
The pitch attracted criticism. Faf du Plessis, the former South Africa captain, described it as “spicy”. The former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan said it was “not an ideal” pitch for T20 cricket, while broadcaster Harsha Bhogle tweeted: “not sure this is the best introduction to cricket in a new land”.
The production of the drop-in pitch at the pop-up stadium was overseen by Damian Hough, the renowned groundsman at Adelaide Oval, and the International Cricket Council, who organise the tournament, will be hoping that the pitch is more conducive to strokeplay by the time India face Pakistan at the ground on Sunday.